The Organ Donation and Transplantation Alliance has taken on a leadership position in healthcare by expanding its diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives to help educate and promote diverse talent at The Alliance and the organ donation and transplantation community through active recruitment, retention, mentoring, and training efforts.
Leveraging the 2022 NASEM report on organ transplants, we will be addressing ongoing disparities in access to donation and transplantation across the organ donation and transplantation continuum. Our endeavors will support our colleagues to attain the highest level of performance among donor hospitals, Organ Procurement Organizations (OPO) and transplant centers through our Advancement Series, Conversation Series, Terminology Resource and DEI Community Resource Toolbox.
Diversity: Diversity is any dimension that can be used to differentiate groups and people from one another. It means respect for and appreciation of differences. Diversity encompasses the range of similarities and differences each individual brings to the workplace, including but not limited to national origin, language, race, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, veteran status, and family structures.
Equity: Equity ensures that all individuals, regardless of their social, economic, demographic, or geographic background are afforded the same opportunities. It is the belief that no one is less than nor should they have poorer life chances based on where they come from, the way the were raised, what they believe, or whether they have a disability. Likewise, equality in healthcare is the belief that all individuals, regardless of their background, receive the same treatment with respect to health determinants, access to resources needed to improve and maintain health, or health outcomes. Health inequality entails a failure to avoid or overcome inequalities that infringe on fairness and human rights norms.
Inclusion: Inclusion should be reflected in an organization’s culture, practices and relationships that are in place to support a diverse workforce. Inclusion is the process of creating a working culture and environment that recognizes, appreciates, seeks out and effectively utilizes the talents, skills, and perspectives of every employee; uses employee skills to achieve the agency’s objectives and mission; connects each employee to the organization; and encourages collaboration, flexibility, and fairness.
The DEI Focused Conversation Series spotlights optimal practices in diversity, equity, and inclusion effective practices within the donation and transplantation community. Our rapid-paced, “all teach all learn” discussion allows participants to join the conversation and share their knowledge, experience, and personal testimonials as it relates to biases, stereotyping, cultural intelligence, and health disparities among the underserved communities.
Knowing the important language of DEI will help establish one’s credibility. But just as important, when someone makes the effort to fully understand and embrace the meaning behind these terms, you demonstrate your empathy, a vital component of being a true ally.
DEI language is important in signaling support which is an important step in the process of fostering greater diversity, equity, and inclusion.
Resources:
Kenneth W. Kizer, Rebecca A. English, Meredith Hackmann, Editors; Committee on A Fairer and More Equitable, Cost-Effective, and Transparent System of Donor Organ Procurement, Allocation, and Distribution; Board on Health Sciences
Policy; Board on Health Care Services; Health and Medicine Division; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine
The AAMC and AMA understand that while the goal of health equity is inclusive of all communities, it cannot be achieved without explicit recognition and reconciliation of our country’s twin, fundamental injustices of genocide and forced labor. We must remember that we carry our ancestors in us, and we are continually called to be better as we lead this work toward the pursuit of racial justice, equity and liberation.
For the first time, APA is systematically and institutionally examining, acknowledging, and charting a path forward to address its role in racism and other forms of destructive social hierarchies including, but not limited to, sexism, ableism, ageism, heterosexism, classism, and religious bigotry. The organization is assessing the harms and is committing to true change. This requires avoiding language that perpetuates harm or offense toward members of marginalized communities through our communications.
As we strive to further infuse principles of equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) into the fabric of society, those committed to effecting change must acknowledge language as a powerful tool that can draw us closer together or drive us further apart. Simply put, words matter. The words we use are key to creating psychologically safe, inclusive, respectful, and welcoming environments.
Tara Lagu, Carol Haywood, Kimberly Reimold, Christene DeJong, Robin Walker Sterling. Lisa I. Iezzoni, HEALTH AFFAIRSVOL. 41, NO. 10: DISABILITY & HEALTH
The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s (the National Academies’) Roundtable on the Promotion of Health Equity planned and hosted a 2-day public workshop titled COVID-19, Health Equity, and the Asian American, Pacific Islander, and Native Communities. The workshop focused on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the unique obstacles faced by the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities1 in achieving health equity.
How can health system marketers ensure that their DEI programming is effectively helping historically underserved populations acquire the care they need? This report will explore how Black and non-Black people of color (POC)2 find and access their care, how these patients feel about their care experiences, and what health systems can do to promote equity and inclusivity.
DEI committees can be established to support organizations of any size, structure and location.
After deciding to form a DEI committee, an organization’s leaders should gain an overview of what a DEI committee actually is, learn from examples of what other DEI committees do and understand why they are becoming more common in the workplace.
The National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine launched their report The Future of Nursing 2020-2030: Charting a Path to Achieve Health Equity (2021).
This new report, which commemorated the International Year of the Nurse and the Midwife, acts as the roadmap of where nursing is going. Specifically, it states:
“The decade ahead will demand a stronger, more diversified nursing workforce that is prepared to provide care; promote health and well-being among nurses, individuals, and communities; and address the systemic inequities that have fueled wide and persistent health disparities.”
One of the blind spots that doctors, nurses, and other healthcare workers have started to notice in their work is inclusivity. Inclusivity means providing equal treatment to people who might otherwise be excluded. From the most recent Future of Nursing Report to our webinar with Osmosis’ own Dr. Marina Horiates Kerekes, we are examining the ways in which access to healthcare, and the treatment received by various populations, has not been equitable, despite our best intentions.
One of the most important aspects of inclusivity is the language we use when interacting with patients and their families. From intake to discharge to continued communication with patients, the word choices that healthcare workers use can define the experience and have a serious impact on health outcomes.
Professionals working in the health, education and justice sectors can dramatically reduce the impact of stigma by reconsidering how they think about people who use alcohol or other drugs (AOD) and choosing words that focus on people, rather than their AOD use.
The right words can reduce stigma, which is a very real and complex problem. It can make people who use or have used alcohol and other drugs feel unwelcome and unsafe and stop them from seeking the services they need, negatively impacting their health, wellbeing, employment and social outcomes.
The right words have the power to improve health outcomes.
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