Penn State Health launches new initiatives to improve diverse patient experience

Several Penn State Health advisory councils are taking steps to further improve the experience of diverse patients. The health system has also added a program manager to improve the experience of diverse patient populations who receive care from Penn State Health.

The initiatives of the health system’s three patient councils – the Disability Inclusion Advisory Council, the Multicultural Advisory Council and the Sexual and Gender Minority Advisory Council – are in response to disparities reflected in experience scores for patients from diverse backgrounds.

Established by the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, the advisory councils focus on inclusive practices, policies and procedures and make recommendations on initiatives that directly impact the perception of care for the health system’s most diverse patients.

The Disability Inclusion Advisory Council is creating a “Patients as Educators” program in which patients living with disabilities teach health care staff through their lived experience. They are also exploring wayfinding challenges – with a focus on accessibility.

The Multicultural Advisory Council is enhancing language support services to ensure all patients can access their health care in their preferred language. These efforts include expanding Penn State Health’s program for bilingual employees to identify as being proficient or to become qualified medical interpreters. It also includes a program that allows callers to hear messages and navigate a department’s menu in their language, connecting them to an interpreter. The council’s initiatives also include updating the Cerner electronic health record system so discharge and aftercare instructions in a patient’s preferred language.

The Sexual and Gender Minority Advisory Council, the oldest of the three councils, has worked to include a patient’s chosen name and pronouns within the electronic health record system, while identifying ways to support our LGBTQ+ patients in navigating the health system.   The council is also working on updating the web page to identify providers who have knowledge or expertise in caring for patients from these communities.

New Diverse Patient Experience manager

To complement the work of the patient advisory councils, the Office for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion has named Caanen Churukha as program manager for diverse patient experience.  In this role, he provides education, guidance and consultation to help teams throughout the health system understand the complexities of working with diverse patients and inclusive environments.

Churukha also coordinates Penn State Health’s compliance with the Affordable Care Act, Section 1557 requirements, which prohibit discrimination based on a patient’s race, color, national origin, age, disability or sex (including pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity and sex characteristics). He works closely with Patient Relations and Patient Experience teams to ensure that patient concerns about language support services and protected status discrimination are addressed.

For questions or consultation on diverse patient experience, please contact Churukha.

If you're having trouble accessing this content, or would like it in another format, please email the Penn State College of Medicine web department.