Darin Latimore, Deputy Dean for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer at the Yale School of Medicine

Bringing DEI to Medicine: Yale Medical School’s First Chief Diversity Officer

By Lukas Corey.

Darin Latimore, MD knew he wanted to be a doctor in the seventh grade. He first realized he had a calling during a kickball game, when he provided basic first aid to his friend Keith following a minor laceration near the metatarsals (Keith cut his foot). After Latimore removed the glass and cleaned and bandaged the wound, his friend’s mood rose and he was able to continue playing. It was a pivotal moment that led Latimore to a longstanding career in medicine that includes HIV treatment and improving medical school Diversity and Inclusion initiatives at both UC Davis and Yale. 

University of California Berkeley was a culture shock for Latimore. He’d been raised in the city of Pittsburg, California, where he attended a working class high school with no AP courses. At college, he encountered few fellow students who looked like him or understood his experiences. 

And he received very little advising. “I went around telling everybody pre-med was my major, even though no such thing existed,” he said. In addition, Latimore said, his academic advisors conveyed to him that he wasn’t likely to succeed in medicine. 

But Latimore persevered. He learned quickly, he said, how to think, study, and succeed in competitive academic environments. He applied to medical school in 1989 and attended UC Davis. 

At the time he pursued his medical degree, HIV infection was rampant, and research on how to treat it was in its infancy. HIV had only been discovered as the cause of AIDS in 1984, and it quickly became both a prominent medical and political issue. More than one of Latimore’s family members were diagnosed, and his best friend in college, after being diagnosed, abandoned hopes of medical school because he didn’t think he would survive long enough to make it. He died during Latimore’s third year of medical school. 

Latimore decided to devote his studies in medicine to HIV care. He completed his residency in internal medicine at UC Davis Medical Center and worked as a physician specializing in HIV care with The Permanente Medical Group in South Sacramento, California, where he also trained medical students and residents. 

As a doctor, Latimore says he is particularly drawn to taking care of others — whether helping a patient understand and accept a new medical diagnosis, or to fight a terminal illness long enough to make it to a graduation or a wedding, or even to die with dignity. “I believe being a doctor is all about the patient,” he says, “and how medicine not only supports their health but also their hopes and dreams.” 

But racial discrimination followed him throughout medical school, residency and practice. Multiple patients called him the N word, Latimore said, and many others doubted his abilities. 

No matter his conviction to provide the best care to patients in need, Latimore found he could no longer ignore the systemic racism that was preventing him and others from minoritized backgrounds from reaching their full potential. 

So Latimore returned to UC Davis in 2008 as the inaugural director for diversity of the medical school. There, he worked on tackling issues of inclusion and belonging, implementing pipeline programs, and working to develop best practices around admissions and hiring. He studied the pervasiveness of racism and sexism in medical schools, from the way curriculums discussed race or gender and sex differences, to standard teaching practice. 

In 2017, Latimore joined Yale School of Medicine as the inaugural Deputy Dean for Diversity and Inclusion and Chief Diversity Officer. At Yale, his work involves developing strategies and initiatives to build community, providing guidance for developing policies and procedures related to DEI issues, increasing and retaining diverse students, staff, and faculty, and supporting research into diversity in medicine. Although Latimore brings years of experience as a doctor and diversity expert from UC Davis, Yale presents unique challenges, he said. 

“It’s an older institution, a private institution, and an Ivy League college that has created an almost mythical narrative about itself,” he says. “There is much more heavy lifting involved in getting things to change.” 

Even so, Latimore has found at Yale individuals and groups highly motivated to participate in advocacy and education around DEI issues. He says that the work of fostering diversity, equity, and inclusion is much like the work of being a doctor. 

“Being the Deputy Dean of Diversity and Inclusion is not about me,” said Latimore. “I had to learn in this role, no matter how personally offended I am by your action, it's not about me. It's about trying to help solve problems and move us forward as a community.” 

His research into the effects of microaggressions on underrepresented medical and nursing students provides more insight into what drives a non-inclusive environment and how to foster one that prioritizes belonging. 

Latimore continues to advise students in his role, using his own life experiences to inspire the next generation of doctors. 

“What I say to the students now is to follow your dreams and continue to work towards whatever your goals are,” he says. “It may not be a straight line, but if you continue to work towards your goals, you can make it.”