The benefit of cultural diversity in an organization has talent and wisdom from many
different groups of people. This knowledge and perspective help organizations tap
into talent that they may never have thought to look for in other groups. Having a
DEI program can help organizations attract new prospects as well as encourage
current employees to get ahead (Talent Intelligence, n.d.). From the information of
The Gateway Healthcare System Case Study, each facility has diversity, equity, and
inclusion issues to solve to build one cohesive culture of tolerance and
understanding. St. Catherine's has an ethnically diverse staff and patient base but can
do more to encourage persons with disabilities to apply. St. Luke's has diversity in
terms of age and that is about it. Even with the age differences, there is little effective
communication between the ages. Hickman has very little diversity and have no
plans to address it. The cultural diversity education plan will be developed as follows:
• An assessment of the diversity needs of each facility.
• Educate all staff on the mission of the combined healthcare system and the
need for diverse work culture.
• Train the managers on diversity, equity, and inclusion so they can attract and
interview new and more diverse talent. They will also train their subordinates
and new hires. They can also help in creating /updating the employee
handbook.
• New hires will receive training over two days, each several hours to address
different DEI concepts. Those concepts will include education about different
cultures, religions, genders, disabilities, and how to respectfully share
workspace and conduct yourselves in group settings. They will be given the
employee manual.
• Mentors will be paired with new hires, so knowledge and ideas can be shared
across diversity lines (Talent Intelligence, n.d.).
• Educate all staff on the importance of abiding by state and government
standards when it comes to DEI, and the accommodations that need to be
made.
• Repeat training annually, as updates and best practices change.
The progress of the DEI program can be evaluated through annual assessments of
department managers, and employees. By assessing employees, you will know if your
program is working or if more needs to be done (Grebner, 2017),
References
Grebner, L. A (2017). Management of Health Information: Functions and Applications. Cengage Learning.
Talent Intelligence (n.d.). The Top 7 Elements Your Diversity Program Should Include. Retrieved 8/4/2022
from https://www.talentintelligence.com/the-top-7-elements-your-diversity-program-should-include/
