USC Keck medical school hires social justice dean

The Los Angeles-based Keck School of Medicine of USC selected Ricky Bluthenthal, PhD, to serve as the institution's first associate dean of social justice, USC Annenberg Media reports.

Four things to know:

1. A former professor in the medical school's department of preventive medicine, Dr. Bluthenthal has been acting in the role of associate dean since Jan. 1, and has since established the USC Keck Office for Social Justice.

2. In his role, Dr. Bluthenthal is responsible for creating a curriculum that analyzes the health-related social justice issues affecting the Los Angeles communities near the university. He said he also plans to conduct a listening tour with the local community and campus leaders to better understand the challenges facing those communities.

"At the most fundamental level, most of the determinants of our health don't have to do with the quality of care we receive or underlying human biology. Instead [it has] to do with where we live — the communities, the people we interact with and whether there are environmental dangers or contaminations," he said in a statement to USC Annenberg Media.

3. Dr. Bluthenthal's role was created by Keck Dean Laura Mosqueda, MD, who was appointed to her role in May 2018 after several scandals involving Keck leadership during the past few years. She is the institution's first female leader.

4. Dr. Bluthenthal told the publication the social justice deanship was not created in response to past issues at the medical school, but as a way to improve Keck's awareness about local communities.

To access the full report, click here.

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