First, let's define diversity according to Grebner and Mattingly (2017),
it "refers to differences among people, such as age, race, nationality,
gender, sexual orientation, or tenure with the organization or
position." In our scenario, St. Luke says that they treat a diverse group
of people; however, the only diversity in the staff is age. Hickman has
already said they were deemed noncompliant with the ADA
(Americans with Disabilities Act), based on the last Joint Commission
survey. Furthermore, they did not give the African American man a
fair chance based on his qualifications. Instead, it seemed like he was
judged because he needed a wheelchair and possibility his race. a
When training on cultural diversity, it is important to talk about
prejudice, stereotyping, and bias. In Oachs and Watters (2020), they
say that prejudice "judges a person based on cultural elements
without reviewing all of the information." This definition is important
for the staff to understand so that they know it is not okay to pick and
choose who they like based on their nationality. We should be open
to talking to everyone and not singling anyone out. Stereotyping is
important to understand because it places a preconceived notion that
all people from a certain age group, race, etc.. are the same. Having
awareness of this can enlighten the staff to be more accepting of
each other. Lastly, bias is a huge part of diversity because it "prevents
a person from having an impartial judgement" (Watters & Oachs,
2020, p. 906). If you have bias in a department, it has the potential to
distort the truth. Instead of looking at a person for their qualifications
and quality of work, you might look at their race or age and decide
you do not like them. This will lead to them potentially feeling like
they are not good enough, when really it is not possible for them to
get past the bias that has been created. It can create hostile work
environments if not dealt with properly.
So, the question becomes, how do we implement training to ensure
that cultural diversity is addressed. I believe that having training for
just about everything is important, but the time to do training has to
be considered. In the hiring phase for staff, I believe that going over
the above definitions would be beneficial. There should be an
employee handbook that they receive, and it should go over why
cultural diversity is important. It should also address the equal
employment opportunity commission. This " prohibits companies
from discriminating against employees for any reason" (Kesee, n.d).
This will let the staff know that you are an equal opportunity
employer. That will already set the staff member in the mindset that
they need to treat everyone with respect.
Secondly, I do think that the cultural self-awareness tool that we used
in module one would be a great tool beyond the employee handbook.
That would get the new staff member thinking about how they are as
a person. Speaking from my experience, that test really opened my
eyes. Perhaps, this could be added to an online module that is
completed. That should fit right into the training and would not take
much more time.
Third, I think that behavior-based training is the best way to address
diversity issues. Behavior-based training "focuses on what it means,
in everyday situations, to think and act inclusively — whether
interactions are in-person, online or on the phone" (Glavin, 2018).
This type of training is focusing on correcting issues before they
occur. This helps the manager address issues that are common
problems or potential problems before they happen. I think that is a
fantastic idea. Other than this, seeing something and keeping a staff
member accountable immediately is a great on the job continuance of
making sure diversity is thriving in your department. Make sure that
staff are looking at each other with multidimensional lens and no one
is put into a race, age, sex, or gender box. In this, I also think it would
be a good time for the staff to bond a little in the training. When a
new employee arrives, it would be good for everyone to introduce
themself. It is important to start off with an atmosphere that allows
everyone to feel included and respected.
Lastly, maybe sending out an email like the announcement today.
Letting people know that time has changed the way certain words are
perceived. As the example today talked about the change of using the
word spaz because of the perception, it is important to stay updated.
Yearly training on this topic should be fine as long as the department
keeps each other accountable in the meantime.
This plan should help encourage others to apply knowing that there is
a safe work environment for them to step into. The reputation that
the employer has is very important to the outside world.
Coming from different backgrounds and being different races,
genders, ages, etc. helps us have different ideas. Learning how to
communicate with one another effectively and be respectful and
understanding other people is important. If we work together, it helps
us learn from one another. It can allow us to explore different beliefs,
different religions and different cultures. Doing that helps us become
more culturally diverse.
Glavin, P. (2018, July 25). 5 reasons cultural diversity & sensitivity
training is important. Traliant. Retrieved August 4, 2022, from
https://www.traliant.com/blog/5-reasons-cultural-sensitivity-
training-is-important/
Grebner, L. A., & Mattingly, R. (2017). Management of Health
Information: Functions & Applications. Cengage Learning.
Kesee, C. (n.d.). Cultural diversity training in the Workplace. Small
Business - Chron.com. Retrieved August 4, 2022, from
https://smallbusiness.chron.com/cultural-diversity-training-
workplace-43290.html
Oachs, P. K., & Watters, A. (2020). In Health Information Management:
Concepts, principles, and Practice (pp. 906–906). essay, AHIMA,
American Health Information Management Association.
