M Health Fairview names two new health equity leaders

The status quo in healthcare has left far too many Minnesotans behind – particularly people of color, LGBTQIA communities, those living in rural areas, and the economically disadvantaged. If we want to be part of the solution, we must take a hard look across our organizations to understand how we can do better and be better for our patients, for our employees, and for the communities we serve.

Last year, we formed the HOPE Commission to hold up a mirror to our organizations, understand our areas of opportunity, and help us chart a very intentional path forward to becoming an anti-racist and inclusive organization. As one of the state’s largest healthcare providers, we have a unique opportunity to move the needle on one of the most important challenges of our time: health equity. 

Doing this work requires intentionality, focus, and determination. To reach our shared vision, each and every one of us must contribute toward the 2025 system goals laid out in the HOPE Commission report and workplan. This effort also requires dedicated individuals who push us collectively toward this north star.

We are pleased to share that Taj Mustapha, MD, will take on the newly created role of Chief Equity Strategy Officer. As a practicing internist-pediatrician and educator who has advanced equity endeavors in the University of Minnesota Medical School, Taj brings a unique lens to how we can address health disparities and improve patient outcomes. To that end, she will be responsible for the vision, leadership, and strategic planning of initiatives that promote health equity as an essential element of our health system’s mission to heal, discover and educate for longer, healthier lives. In addition to her new CESO role within M Health Fairview, Taj will also be the Assistant Dean of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the University of Minnesota Medical School, which will further strengthen and align our efforts across the joint clinical enterprise. Finally, she will serve as a member of the Executive Leadership Team (ELT) in order to ensure we are bringing that lens to every aspect of our organization and to every project we tackle.

To truly advance health and wellness, we know that our efforts to care for our community cannot stop at our hospital and clinic doors. Diane Tran, who currently leads our external engagement work, will take on the role of System Executive Director of Community Health Equity and Engagement. Our Community Advancement team already does incredible work, including:

• Delivering vaccines through trusting partnerships in accessible spaces
• Supporting opportunities for healthy living with culturally appropriate food deliveries and wellness programs
• Providing resources and support through sponsorships, employee volunteerism, and community collaborations

Diane’s new role will bring a sharpened focus to how we co-create with community to promote health equity outside our walls and across our footprint as anchor institutions. 

Taj and Diane will collaborate to ensure an integrated, aligned approach for M Health Fairview as we address institutional and systemic barriers to equity inside and outside our walls. Together, their work will equip the partnership to comprehensively advance healthcare equity and community health equity. It demonstrates a significant commitment by M Health Fairview to becoming an anti-racist and inclusive academic health system.

They join Ana Núñez, MD, FACP, Vice Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at the University of Minnesota Medical School; Arnoldo Curiel, EdD, MPA, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) for University of Minnesota Physicians (M Physicians); Nicole Beauvais, PA-C, MMS, MPH, Vice President of Quality and Health Equity, Erich Stoltz Spencer, MBA, SHRM-SCP, SPHR, System Executive Director of Human Resource Strategy; Myat Tun, MA, DEI Program Manager; and Melissa Kimber, DEI Program Manager for the Fairview Health Services, in shepherding this work through every aspect of our roles as employers, healthcare providers, and community leaders.

Taj and Diane – along with Christopher Warlick, MD, PhD, who serves as Chair of the University of Minnesota Medical School’s Department of Urology – have worked tirelessly over the last year as HOPE Commissioners. This gave them a platform to dig deeper into the challenges confronting our system and our community, and to chart our path forward. With these new roles, they take on even more responsibility to help us collectively advance and meet the ambitious milestones laid out on our journey- together – to become an anti-racist and inclusive organization.