By Sabreen Dawud,
Special to the AFRO
Tears and applause filled the Cramton Auditorium as the Howard University College of Medicine hosted the 23rd Annual Long White Coat Ceremony on March 15 at 9:30 am.
The event commemorated Match Day, a national day in which medical students open an envelope that reveals where they will begin their residency programs.
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, only about 5.7 percent of physicians in the United States identify as Black or African American.
Graduates of the Howard University College of Medicine gathered to be given their long white coats on stage in honor of their entrance into the medical field post-grad. Each student was also handed their Match Day envelope, which they opened at the conclusion of the ceremony.
The event opened with words from the masters of ceremony, Ameenat Akeeb and Kylar Wiltz. Their introduction was followed by a performance of the national anthem from Mikayla Harris and an invocation by Lawrence Garvin II.
Greetings were provided by Dr. Andrea A. Hayes Dixon, dean of Howard University College of Medicine, and Xavier Becerra, U.S. secretary of Health and Human Services.
“We want Americans to recognize that this is what America should be and will look like in the future,” Becerra affirmed.
A class welcome was led by the President of the Howard University College of Medicine, Ixavion Wright, and Vice President of the Howard University College of Medicine, Kyla Bass.
Wright and Bass also awarded select residents, faculty and staff who were recognized for their outstanding work. These honorees included Dr. Dom Guelce, named “Outstanding Resident,” and Dr. Damires Fossett, who was celebrated as “Outstanding Faculty.” Shashika Cope and Leiza O’Neil were recognized as “Outstanding Staff.”
The 17th President of Howard University and Charles R. Drew Professor of Surgery, Dr. Wayne A.I. Frederick, served as the keynote speaker of the ceremony. Frederick emphasized the importance of a physician’s ability to maintain humility and respect for others throughout their career.
“You should be trying to amplify other people’s humanity. You should everyday be looking for that opportunity to make somebody else’s existence that much better,” he said.
With a class of 97 graduates, the Cramton Auditorium seats were filled with family, friends and loved ones. Graduates such as Jada Watts, who will be training in emergency medicine at University of Chicago, described her emotions during the event.
“It was really a whirlwind of emotion— very powerful emotions. It felt so good to see so many Black doctors walking across the stage—people you’ve been sitting with at their worst and at their best,” said Watts. “We all overcame it,” she said, of the challenges faced through medical school.
“I opted for emergency medicine because it’s a field where patients often mirror the community. In the emergency department, we have the opportunity to provide care irrespective of individuals’ socioeconomic backgrounds,” she continued. “This inclusivity is particularly meaningful to me and serves as a driving force in my journey forward to tackling healthcare disparities.”
Other graduates such as Kyra Watson, who will be training in general surgery at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, shared how the ceremony allowed her to reflect on the support she received as a student at Howard University College of Medicine.
“Seeing Black doctors—working with Black doctors day in and day out at Howard— it really keeps the fire underneath of you especially because they’re the ones who are really pushing you in that direction,” she shared. “If you’re struggling with something and you go to these doctors, they’ll sit down with you and they’ll chat with you, tell you about their experiences and help you along the way.”
As Black doctors who are entering the medical field, graduates such as Jasmine Walker, who will be training at Louisiana State University in Shreveport, La. for orthopedic surgery, and Bryttany McClendon, who will be training at George Washington University for obstetrics and gynecology in the nation’s capital, emphasized how their time at Howard University allowed them to hone in on their desire to center Black wellness.
“Coming to Howard was the best decision I ever made in my entire life. I knew I wanted a medical education that was not going to overlook the Black community,” Walker said.
Her sentiments were echoed by McClendon.
“I’m here for my people and I love that Howard instilled that in me that it’s okay to want to really help my community. That doesn’t mean I’m neglecting others, but it’s okay that I’m focusing on making sure that my community is good because it’s been neglected historically for so long.”
As the Howard University College of Medicine honors the Class of 2024, the graduates continue to bask in the excitement of what is to come as they embark on their post-grad careers.
“Being a black doctor in medicine held immense significance for me, primarily because of the scarcity of physicians who resembled me in my upbringing. It wasn’t until I entered a community like Howard, where numerous African American physicians serve as trailblazers, that I realized the profound importance of representation,” said Watts. “In environments where underlying social determinants significantly impact disease prevalence, having diverse representation is crucial. Studies have shown that enhancing diversity in the medical field correlates with improved patient outcomes.”