By Jay Juffre
Over the past six months, we have been looking at what the best of the best are doing to drive better patient care and outcomes. Today we are going to hit on Culturally Competent Care.
I work with a number of non-profit organizations and one role I have is as South Florida Regional Board Chair for a national cancer organization. We spend a ton of time, thinking, planning and acting on our DEI initiatives, because frankly cancer affects everyone. The top healthcare providers also recognize the importance of cultural diversity and sensitivity in healthcare delivery. They are implementing procedures to ensure patients from diverse backgrounds receive equitable, respectful and culturally appropriate care that aligns with their beliefs, values, and preferences.
So why is this so important and why are so many leading providers focused on this? One reason they are focused on this is because they simply want to serve the entire community and not just part of it. At times this calls for slightly different approaches to different patients and their families. For example, South Florida is one of the most diverse populations in the country. There are questions to ask to assess how your approach stacks up. For example, how well does your organization serve that community? How well is your team trained to handle issues that may come up when dealing with people from different backgrounds? What type of community outreach or educational opportunities do you engage in? Does the diversity of your patients reflect the area you serve? Are there any populations being neglected?
In the day to day bustle of getting things done, this topic is often overlooked, but how much more successful could you be by casting a wider net and offering more care to more people. When it comes to high quality patient care, look to what the best are doing when it comes to culturally competent care, and see what opportunities your team may have to improve.
Jay Juffre is Executive Vice President, Total Customer Experience, ImageFIRST. For more information on ImageFIRST, call 1-800-932-7472 or visit www.imagefirst.com.
