DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION
Advancing health care equity How Minnesota’s health plans are leading the way BY LUCAS NESSE, JD
H
ealth equity–it’s giving all people and their communities the opportunity to achieve their highest level of health by eliminating gaps in care. It’s at the core of how we make health care work better for everyone.
Achieving equitable health outcomes is multilayered. It requires those of us in the health care industry to not only be culturally competent and antiracist in our policies and approaches, but that we are looking at all the factors that lead to successful outcomes in life–also known as the social drivers of health. This includes ensuring that people have ample access to good jobs, quality education, safe and stable housing, reliable transportation and many other life assets. The disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on people of color is just one example of how health disparities have weighed heavily on our diverse communities. It reveals that there is much more work to do to improve access and deliver equitable care to everyone, but also that we must listen more to communities of color to better understand what their needs are. With this, Minnesota’s nonprofit health plans have a renewed focus on equity, creating a number of initiatives that will support
Minnesotans–particularly those from vulnerable communities – in their health care journey. I am grateful to highlight a few of those equity programs, along with the people who helped bring those initiatives to life.
HealthPartners Health Equity Champions teach ways to reduce bias, promote cultural humility HealthPartners has mobilized a grassroots movement to help close gaps in outcomes and educate colleagues on ways to reduce bias and promote cultural humility and anti-racism. Some 350 employees have stepped up to become Health Equity Champions, serving as a resource to advance equitable care throughout the enterprise. “Being welcome, included and valued is a basic human need and essential to health and well-being,” said HealthPartners Chief People Officer DeLinda Washington. “Our Health Equity Champions are a great resource as we work to educate our colleagues.” In addition to being ambassadors, the Health Equity Champions also help research, write and share the HealthPartners Culture Roots newsletter. Recent issues have focused on addressing disparities in depression screening and treatment, microaggressions and advancing LGBTQ health.
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JULY 2022 MINNESOTA PHYSICIAN
DeLinda Washington, Chief People Officer, HealthPartners
In an issue on maternal and infant health disparities, the newsletter shared how HealthPartners is addressing bias to provide the best care and service to patients and members. HealthPartners team members collect data on births and prenatal and postpartum care and partner with community organizations to ensure patient needs are met.
The United States has some of the highest maternal and infant mortality rates among developed countries, especially among people of color. Black infants, for instance, are nearly four times as likely to die from complications related to low birthweight compared with white infants. In an effort to eliminate these disparities, HealthPartners has implemented structured, consistent practices for how clinician teams address the complications that can occur during pregnancy and childbirth. This includes things like managing hypertension during pregnancy, addressing abnormal fetal heart beats during labor and preventing and managing hemorrhaging that can happen after pregnancy. These structured approaches are called “safety bundles,” and include steps to: • Be ready. • Recognize and prevent. • Respond. • Report and learn.