Norman Regional Hospital: As a Collective

As a Collective

Health system focuses on retention, patient care through diversity and inclusion efforts

It is easy to hire but it is hard to keep,” shared Adrian Francisco, co-chair of the Inclusion and Diversity Council with Norman Regional Health System. This is a critical point for an industry that ranks among the fastest growing. The healthcare industry is projected to add more new jobs in the next 10 years than any other occupational group, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Francisco and a team of medical professionals formed the Inclusion and Diversity Council within the health system in 2020 with the belief that diversity and inclusion would result in better patient care through representation as well as diverse attitudes, practices and knowledge. “There is a noble purpose in being a regional health system,” he shared. “In 2020, we had all kinds of staffing challenges, but we knew it was important to make sure we are sustainable.

“As we work as a collective, we know that diversity is about the people. Inclusion is our active effort to bring together everyone to provide the best care for our patients. Every year, we sign our handbook to refresh our commitment to how we treat each other and our patients.

CLINICAL AND NON-CLINICAL HIRING EVENTS:

• Tuesday, June 7 at Norman

Regional Hospital Education

Center, 4-6 p.m. • Thursday, June 23, virtually, find a link at normanregional. com/careers, 4-6 p.m. • Tuesday, July 5 at Norman

Regional Moore Conference

Center, 4-6 p.m. • Tuesday, August 2 at Norman

Regional Moore Conference

Center, 4-6 p.m.

We want to make sure we are all valuing the person in front of us.”

The council is comprised of representatives from many of the health system’s departments and they encourage staff to shine a light on areas that could be improved and offer solutions. Since its inception, the council has worked to cultivate community partnerships and mentoring programs and created initiatives to ensure staff feels seen and supported as well as seek to improve hiring practices for underrepresented groups such as women, people of color, veterans and members of the LBBTQ+ community, Francisco said. “It has been great to see our efforts grow in such a short time,” he said. “We are listening to staff and employing their ideas.”

Francisco recognizes that, for some, diversity and inclusion are controversial issues.

“The council started at a time when there was a lot of social unrest, but it grew into a group that wanted to be engrained throughout the system,” he explained. “The second we start talking about diversity and inclusion, people make it political, but we need to make it about the people.” The council has helped start various programs including recognizing cultural holidays and celebrations and has even incorporated the initiative in the hospital cafeteria serving recipes from staff members. Everything from patient intake paperwork to hiring practices has been impacted, Francisco said. Looking into the future, the council would like to create employee resource groups, hire a dedicated professional to lead the effort, develop additional trainings and increase connections in the community. The health system is hosting several hiring events throughout the summer as well as virtual hiring events. For more information, visit normanregional.com/careers. – BSM

Adrian Francisco, co-chair of the Inclusion and Diversity Council