For Immediate Release:

MENTORING IN MEDICINE AND THE INTERNATIONAL MULTIPLE SCLEROSIS MANAGEMENT PRACTICE JOIN FORCES TO DELIVER EDUCATION AS AN ANTIDOTE FOR DISCRIMINATION

The IEEF Awards $65,000.00 in Medical School Scholarship Funds to Future Physicians

New York, NY – June 7, 2021 – The International Multiple Sclerosis Management Practice (IMSMP) today announced that it has awarded its Equality Empowerment Fund (IEEF) scholarship to three recipients. The IEEF was created in 2020 after the world witnessed the unfortunate incidents involving African Americans and other minorities bringing systemic racism to the forefront. Through a collaborative effort with Mentoring in Medicine, the initiative came to fruition.

“We are setting up the ‘IMSMP Equality Empowerment Fund’ for deserving and motivated students who do not have access to the right opportunities due to financial hardship,” Dr. Saud A. Sadiq, Director of the IMSMP announced last year. “If we can help underprivileged students every year with funding, what seems like a drop in the ocean can have a rippling effect on their future. We hope that others will follow, not just with statements of outrage, but with positive actions.”

The IEEF will provide a total of $65,000.00 in medical school tuition each year to three students who remain in good standing throughout their medical school careers. Mentoring in Medicine, a non-profit organization that works with students in disadvantaged areas, with a mission to diversify the biomedical workforce by mentoring and introducing underrepresented students to careers in science and health care received 78 applications for this scholarship opportunity.

Dr. Lynne Holden, President of Mentoring in Medicine stated, “As of July 2019, there were 918,547 practicing physicians with 5% and 5.8% self-identified as Black and Latinx, respectively, as reported by the Association of American Medical Colleges. According to an April 2021 New England Journal of Medicine article, the number of Black male medical students consisted of 3.1% of national medical school enrollment in 1978; by 2019 that overall number has decreased to 2.9%. The Mentoring in Medicine Team is delighted to partner with Dr. Saud A. Sadiq and his team to assist in decreasing the financial burden of attending medical school especially during a time when there is such a huge demand for physicians who are underrepresented in medicine. We would like to thank Dr. Sadiq for his generosity and hope that he inspires other established professionals to pay it forward. Our next generation is facing unimaginable challenges. This gift to three students certainly makes their dream of becoming a doctor much easier!”

About the IMSMP

Patients travel from around the globe for the unique experience at the IMSMP, where a team of expertly trained healthcare professionals provides an unparalleled level of care. Our mission is to provide the best care in the world for people with multiple sclerosis (MS).

About Mentoring in Medicine

Mentoring in Medicine (www.MedicalMentor.org) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit dedicated to inspiring and educating the next generation of health and science professionals from middle school to medical school since 2007. We have helped 374 students become physicians and impacted 55,000 students, parents, and teachers. Mentoring in Medicine provides academic enrichment, leadership development, civic engagement, parent training, professional development for educators, and mentoring.

###

Media Inquiries: Pamela Levin, RN 646-557-3891, plevin@imsmp.org