Transforming your leadership team into a diverse team of quality members requires time, commitment, and a variety of best practices.  The practices that will help change your organization will be highly individualized programs based on your organization’s governance, culture, and the needs or your local community.  Through careful examination with a company like CulturaLink, your organization can identify blind spots and take action with several best practices such as:

Diversity Committees

Internal committees that are focused on diversity initiatives and programs allow hospitals and health care systems to identify potential leaders with an interest in diversity. Individuals who participate on and lead these committees gain valuable experience that is transferable to new positions. Additionally, these committees help guide and recommend changes related to diversity within the organization.

New Positions

Hospitals and health care systems can create new job positions — such as a chief diversity officer — that are dedicated to promoting diversity within the organization. In addition, health care organizations can set up internal diversity committees and designate staff to serve as leaders for increasing diversity.

Improved Hiring Practices

By developing and implementing enhanced hiring practices, hospitals and health care systems can identify a diverse group of candidates for an open job position. Ensuring a diverse candidate pool involves additional effort by the hospital or health care system. Hiring managers can advertise job openings via community bulletin boards, cultural community groups and local community centers. It is important that hiring practices align with the health care organization’s internal benchmarks for diversity.

Partnership with Educational Institutions

Collaboration with high schools, community colleges, universities and graduate schools allows hospitals and health care systems to expose students to the work in their organization and in the health care field. For example, a hospital or health care system can partner with a hospital administration graduate program to identify candidates and interns for jobs at their organization.

Mentorships

Hospital and health care system leaders identify staff and pair them with an experienced professional to develop specific skills and knowledge that are aligned with the organization. These working relationships allow the health care organization to provide one-on-one training and identify future leaders.