Rheumatology Fellowship Diversity Advisory Committee
In NYU Langone’s Division of Rheumatology, diversity and inclusion are among our core values. The data are clear that a diverse physician and research workforce results in higher-quality care and more innovative discoveries.
In this pivotal moment in the history of social justice, we are both proud of our record and deeply aware of our need to improve. We are privileged to care for patients in the nation’s first public hospital, NYC Health + Hospitals Bellevue, in the most diverse city in the country, and to embrace the principle that “no one is turned away.”
We have a proud track record of training fellows of all backgrounds and supporting trainees through our institution’s many diversity and inclusion initiatives. The task of promoting diversity and opportunity requires concerted and purposeful effort. With this in mind, we established our Fellowship Diversity Advisory Committee (FDAC) in 2019. Among other roles, the FDAC ensures our accountability in trainee and faculty development, faculty and staff antiracism education, and best practices in reviewing fellowship applications.
We are committed to training quality fellows of all races, ethnicities, religious affiliations, sexual orientations, and gender identities. We encourage all to apply to our Rheumatology Fellowship and look forward to doing our part in building a rheumatology workforce as diverse as the country we serve.
Learn more about diversity and inclusion at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine.
Committee Members
Cesar E. Fors Nieves, MD; Committee Chair
Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
Throughout his career, Dr. Fors Nieves has dedicated himself to work with underserved urban communities in large safety-net hospitals, and his academic focus has been primarily on medical education. He is a founding member of the Rheumatology Fellowship Diversity Advisory Committee, with the express goal of enhancing recruiting and retention of diverse fellows within the division.
Amit Saxena, MD
Assistant Professor, Department of Medicine
Dr. Saxena is the director of lupus clinical trials in our division and has been the site principal investigator in more than 25 industry, National Institutes of Health–sponsored, and investigator-initiated interventional and observational trials. He is also co-director of the Clinical Trials Design course for NYU Grossman School of Medicine’s MS in Clinical Investigation. As a founding member of the Rheumatology Fellowship Diversity Advisory Committee, Dr. Saxena believes that medical education plays an essential role in cultivating a physician workforce to meet the needs of our diverse communities.
Dr. Scher holds multiple roles in the division including that of associate director for research and translational medicine within the division. In that role, Dr. Scher serves as a key leader within the divisional research mission and supports the research careers and development for our faculty and trainees.
