Health equity: Panel details why it is good for patients, hospitals – and vendors

Please make moral case to caring for all – but if you need more, see the business case, too

A hospital can offer special shampoo for those who have coarser hair. Scar cream that is specifically made for those with darker skin. An audio device that offers verbal instructions to help those with visibility disabilities find their way around a building. Or even a registration system that helps those going through a name transition remain discreet as they navigate their way through the day.

The examples are endless — but all point to how health systems determined to ensure health equity are making their hospitals more welcoming to communities that often struggle to feel welcome when they are looking for places to get care.

A recent panel during the second annual Supplier Diversity Summit hosted by Johnson & Johnson and sponsored by the New Jersey Pride Chamber of Commerce and the NJ Diverse Business Advisory Council, detailed how the small changes health care systems are making have big impact on so many undeserved communities.

The panel included:

  • Debbie Millar, the director of community wellness and engagement for Penn Medicine Princeton Health;
  • Perry Farhat, the director of diversity & inclusion at RWJBarnabas Health and the director of its Babs Siperstein PROUD Center in Somerville;
  • Dr. Chris Awwad, the medical director for the LGBTQ+ Health and Wellness Center at Bergen New Bridge Medical Center.

Each detailed the importance of helping those from underserved (and often unwelcomed) communities find a safe space, whether they are Black or Brown, LGBTQ, veterans or anyone else struggling to find a fit.

“We help them feel seen,” Perry said.

The Siperstein Proud Center was one of the first places to practice this idea.

The concept of the center came up in 2017, when an internal Business Resource Group began discussing the fact that N.J. had no facilities that appealed to the needs of the LGBTQ community.

After an assessment was done, it was opened one day a week, serving a dozen or so patients. It’s now open seven days a week – and served approximately 2,400 patients last year – many of which now come from out of state.

“We’ve become a beacon of hope in New Jersey and from other states,” Farhat said. “They’re coming in as health refugees.”

The center was started as a revenue generator, but it has become just that. More so, it has created an environment in which vendors not only can meet the unique needs it has – but also suggest products and services that they may not know they need.

Other systems have followed suit. The key, Awwad said, is making sure they are in it for the right reasons. That was his biggest concern when he interviewed for his current position at Bergen New Bridge. He quickly got the answers he was looking for.

“BNB has this long history of caring for people who didn’t have care otherwise – people who were considered almost untouchable by most medical systems,” he said. “This program fit right into the larger mission of Bergen New Bridge.”

Awwad said a lot of health systems wave the Pride flag in June, then put it away.

“Everybody wanted to pick up a piece of the LGBT pie, but didn’t want to make the actual commitment,” he said.

Once he realized Bergen New Bridge did, he was all in.

Millar said Penn Medicine Princeton Health has been caring for all since it was small acute care hospital in Princeton.

“We were looking at ways to reach out to our community, to the underserved population so and looking at health equity and ways that we can kind of really engage with our community and make them a healthier, happier place to be,” she said.

The merger with Penn Medicine brought more resources – and the ability to create new programs, such as a patient family advisory council, what Millar calls a representation of all diverse communities that were patients of our facility that let them what they need to do better.

“We’re currently improving our process and finding that we can be more inclusive and more diverse,” she said.

All three stressed the hospitals can’t do it alone. They long to get more feedback – more ideas – from anyone. They encouraged those in the room to present them with ideas on how they can serve these populations better.

Again, the opportunities are endless: Create a system where those who prefer to speak a language other than English have a way to communicate. Teach the staff cultural competencies so they have a better understanding of the communities they are serving. Help those on Medicaid, who can’t afford to take days off, get their prescriptions filled.

It all goes to a higher goal, Millar said.

“We’re really trying to work and really get the opportunity for everyone to gain a higher level of health,” she said. “We’re increasingly recognizing the need to cater to the unique needs of our diverse communities.”

And, according to the panelists, they are not concerned about any of the backlash toward programs some would label as DEI.

“When you can’t make the ethical case, make the business case,” Awwad said. “You want less blind spots in your research and development – and less blind spots in the services that you’re providing.”

Systems are looking to vendors for help in this new era of health care.

“In order to survive and remain relevant, vendors are going to have to come forward and offer up solutions to health care providers,” he said. “If you have a diverse group of people and less blind spots, you can do that much more effectively and beat out your competition.”

If you don’t, Farhat said, don’t be surprised if business goes elsewhere.

“The LGBTQ community travels in packs,” he said. “So, you need to make sure that everybody feels comfortable, otherwise, you won’t survive.”