RHEDI Welcomes 1st Cohort of the Resident Scholars Program for Workforce Diversity

We are thrilled to announce RHEDI’s inaugural group of participants in the family medicine Resident Scholars Program for Workforce Diversity (RSPWD). The RSPWD is a one-year experience for BIPOC family medicine residents, predominantly from groups underrepresented in medicine (URM), in order to support their development as leaders in Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) in family medicine. Scholars will pair with BIPOC SRH mentors in order to develop relationships with experts who incorporate a reproductive justice framework into clinical care, research, leadership, and teaching. Through virtual workshops,  participation in professional conferences, scholars will have opportunities to develop skills which are fundamental to their professional  development and their commitment to promoting sexual and reproductive health care in family medicine and diversity in the SRH workforce.

Meet the future of family medicine and get to know our 2021-2022 RSPWD participants.

Dr. Aljanee Whitaker – Kaiser Permanente Napa-Solano Family Medicine Residency Program

Dr. Whitaker is a former high school science teacher who helped students understand that diverse teachers help create a more diverse workforce in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). Today, Dr. Whitaker combines her passion for promoting diverse representation with a background caring for patients from underserved communities. She has shown a strong commitment to integrating medication abortion into family medicine, and remains a proud advocate for advancing the interests of African-Americans in medicine and science.

Dr. Angela Bangs – Family Medicine Residency of Idaho

Dr. Bangs is active and engaged in policy, promotes sexual and reproductive health awareness, and helps those around her understand the nuances of racism in medicine and the impact on health. She brings a unique perspective about the challenges rural and underserved patients face to access abortion care. She’s eager to incorporate much of what she learns while participating in RSPWD to assist BIPOC patients in her post-residency practice. 

Dr. Bianca Jenkins –McGaw Northwestern Family Medicine Residency Program

Community Service and HIV Care shaped Dr. Jenkins’ belief in the importance of sexual and reproductive health education and testing. As a former Americorps volunteer for LGBTQA youth diagnosed with HIV, giving back to the community, and improving access to care in underserved neighborhood, drove Dr. Jenkins to pursue a career in family medicine. She is currently focused on a concentration in HIV patient care and sits on the American Medical Association Foundation’s committee to create an LGBTQ primary care fellowship. Ultimately, she wants to return to her roots and provide sexual and reproductive health services at a community health center where she was raised.

Dr. Brittany Baptiste – Overlook Family Medicine Residency Program

Dr. Baptiste looks forward to a long career at a Community Health Center that will focus on improving the health of at-risk women. A self-described wholesome and holistic physician, Dr. Baptiste focuses on women’s health and helping patients navigate the health care system with confidence and independence. She’s a regular volunteer who cares for expectant mothers, and wants to focus on women’s health, social and political injustice, and community service in her post-residency practice.

Dr. Chantal Tape –University of Pennsylvania, Family Medicine Program

With a background in research, community organizing, and community health, Dr. Tape is an emerging health care leader that’s passionate about reproductive health, social justice, and equitable care for medically-underserved patients. She has researched the contributors to intimate partner violence, counseled women about their pregnancy options and pre-abortion services, and served as a student leader among medical students. Dr. Tape has named improving abortion access as her top career priority.

Dr. Bryana Williams – Duke University Family Medicine and Community Health
Dr. Williams is a former labor and abortion Doula. She is a black, queer physician who wants to make abortion care more patient-centered and to protect transgender/queer patients from marginalization. Her roots are in advocacy and activism, and her service as an Americorps volunteer shaped her commitment to creating more equitable access to abortions. After she completes her residency, Dr. Williams hopes to return to North Carolina and serve BIPOC and LGBTQ communities at a Federally Qualified Health Center.

Dr. Jasmine Abraham – Swedish Family Medicine  Residency Program at First Hill

A full spectrum birth and abortion doula, and former organizer in communities of color, Dr. Abraham knows that meaningful change comes from genuine relationships with deep bonds. Before her selection as a scholar, Dr. Abraham ran a grassroots reproductive justice nonprofit organization. She’s led doula trainings around the nation and helped national abortion advocacy organizations understand the needs of transgender patients. As her career continues, she hopes to provide “care in the community,” while mobilizing people to create sustainable change through the creation of a neighborhood-led abortion clinic that will focus on the health of women of color.

Dr. Jennifer Perdomo – Long Beach Memorial Family Medicine Residency Program

Dr. Perdomo has dedicated much of her work to advancing reproductive justice. Her work focuses on improving health equity among Latinos, with a distinct focus on increasing access to reproductive health and full spectrum family planning. Her research focuses on medication adherence among Latinos in East Los Angeles and helping patients take accountability of their health. Dr. Perdomo credits the trajectory of her career to readily available access to reproductive health services, and looks forward to guiding patients on their reproductive journeys in her future work.

Dr. Mariana Leone – Meritus Family Medicine Residency Program

Dr. Leone’s background focused on caring for patients from medically-underserved communities. After working as a travelling physician in Mexico serving patients with limited prenatal care, and as a viral disease consultant in Washington, D.C., Dr. Leone possesses first-hand experience about the need for preventive medicine programs that focus on women’s health. She’s committed to participating in the fight to keep women’s reproductive choice meaningful as her career continues.

Dr. Nery Guerrero – Contra Costa Family Medicine Residency Program

Despite currently completing her family medicine residency in California, Dr. Guerrero knows where she’s going next. She’s already actively engaged in Medical Students for Choice, the ACLU of Texas, and has career goals to return home to practice along the U.S.-Mexico border, build community, and fight for women’s reproductive health rights in Texas. As a Latina from a border town, Dr. Guerrero’s intimate knowledge about the challenges undocumented patients, and belief in the importance of cultural competency, help her easily build trust with patients. In addition to reproductive health, she has a strong interest in community health and diversity.