Purpose: This database was developed as a component of a research study funded by the Texas Higher Education Board (THECB) in an effort to identify "best practices" for recruiting and retaining minority students into the health workforce pipeline. The scope of this research includes investigation of the programs intended to address underrepresentation of minorities in a variety of health disciplines (e.g.) Allied health, Dentistry, Medicine, Nursing, Pharmacy, Public Health and General Health and across all Pipeline levels (e.g. Kindergarten through Grade 12, Undergraduate education at both two-year and four-year institutions and Graduate education including professional degree programs).
Published Programs: A component of the study included compiling a set of programs that have been published in refereed and/or peer-reviewed journals or similar publications. Programs represented in the "Best Practices" database were derived from an extensive search of the literature for articles that featured and/or evaluated programs that sought to recruit and retain minorities into health workforce pipeline. Programs that were published between 1990 to the present are included in this database. As a result published programs may no longer be operational. For the purposes of this study, programs meeting these criteria are referred to as "published".
Experiential Programs: A search of the literature revealed that there are a multitude of programs that are currently being implemented that have not been published in referred and/or peer-reviewed journals. These programs are offered by colleges and universities, federal, state and local governments, and various organizations representing the health industry and nonprofit sectors. Experiential programs are often subject to a multitude of constraints. As a result programs included in this database may no longer be offered. For the purposes of this study, programs meeting these criteria are referred to as "experiential".
Evaluation & Scoring: In order to determine which programs can be categorized as "best" or "promising" practices for recruiting and retaining minorities into health careers, an interdisciplinary expert panel was formed. Expert panel members developed a standardized operational definition of "best practices" as it relates to recruiting and retaining minority students into health professions. The standardized definition was used to score and rank programs in an effort to identify unifying characteristic of programs that have been successful in recruiting and retaining minorities into the health workforce pipeline.