and inclusion into cul-
ture and people prac-
tices. So what can
organizations that
want to make
progress in their diver-
sity efforts do? Here
are a few ideas to help
drive and sustain
change in this area.
• Commit. Leaders
must understand the
power of diversity and have a vision for how to implement it. Make
your commitment to diversity known. Post mission statements and
solicit patient feedback about your goal to provide high-quality care to
patients from all backgrounds, and then really listen and incorporate
the feedback that patients share. Integrate the feedback into your val-
ues and practices and then seek feedback again.
• Practice humility. Cultural humility is the acknowledgement that
it is impossible to know everything there is to know about another
culture, and even if we do gain a level of knowledge, we may not
know that person's orientation to their culture. Our colleagues recog-
nize this fact, and embrace a mindset of curiosity and a desire to
engage patients as partners in their own care by asking, "What should
I know about you in order to best serve you?"
• Evaluate practices. Our teams also work hard to understand and be
sensitive to the changing realities of our patients' experiences. For
instance, well-intentioned questions like, "Have you been out of the
country recently?" could be huge triggers for populations that may be
concerned about their identity as immigrants. Taking the time to explain
N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 9 • O U T PA T I E N T S U R G E R Y. N E T • 1 7
STAYING CONNECTED Minority patients can easily share their surgical care experi-
ences on social media platforms or rating websites.
