DEI in Healthcare: 5 FAQs for Nurse Practitioners

You’ve probably heard a lot of talk about DEI in healthcare (otherwise known as diversity, equity, and inclusion). But what does that mean, and why is it important?

At SMNP Reviews and Blueprint Test Prep, we believe in the power of DEI initiatives and hopefully that reflects in our NP board prep courses and Qbanks. We not only want to help prepare you to become safe providers, but also culturally competent providers.

In this post, we’re going to talk about what DEI is and how you can incorporate this important principle into your practices as real deal NPs. We’ll go over some background on DEI and how to take a baseline of what it looks like in your current practice or clinical space. Then, we’ll offer some examples of DEI healthcare practices and discuss some ways that you can get involved in making positive changes!

Read on with an open mind and get ready to make a positive impact!

Prefer to listen? Put on your headphones and tune into this podcast episode about DEI in healthcare with Sarah Michelle and Anna!

1. Why is DEI important in healthcare?

We have to start out by first defining what DEI is. We already mentioned that it stands for diversity, equity, and inclusion, but what does that mean as a whole?

💜 Diversity refers to having an assorted group of people, or individuals with different racial, ethnic, cultural, or experiential backgrounds, come together as a group.

💜 Equity is the fairness by which everyone is treated.

💜 Inclusion is getting everyone involved in the discussion, decisions, and actions of the group.

Think of DEI as seeking out and embracing different viewpoints and perspectives and valuing those contributions. And to do that, we need lots of people with different backgrounds and experiences. In healthcare, DEI is necessary from an organizational standpoint, but also in patient care. 

Outcomes of DEI in Healthcare

DEI leads to improved patient care and outcomes for several reasons. First and foremost, better communication between team members leads to better continuity of care. Also, DEI increases employee satisfaction, productivity, and retention. So, if your organization values and incorporates DEI initiatives, they’re also being financially responsible!

In caring for our patients, we should embrace DEI practices because patients of marginalized and underserved communities will benefit. Having providers with different backgrounds and experiences can make patients more comfortable and want to seek out care while helping to eliminate barriers to care. 

2. What is unconscious bias?

The first thing we need to discuss is unconscious bias, also known as implicit bias. Unconscious biases are the automatic assumptions about others that can affect our actions. Having unconscious biases doesn’t make you a bad person—we all have our own unique experiences with the world that have shaped that way we think. A key part of becoming a more accepting and inclusive individual is learning to recognize those unconscious biases and learning to think differently.

There are lots of types of unconscious bias. Some examples are:
– Making assumptions about someone’s intelligence based on their perceived race or ethnicity or physical appearance
– Overlooking an older employee for a promotion because “they’ll probably retire soon anyway”
– Tendency to overly favor people with similar ideas

Being able to recognize your unconscious biases is the first step to incorporating DEI practices in both your personal and professional life. 

3. How do you evaluate your current NP practice for DEI?

Now, we want you to visualize what your current practice or clinical setting looks like. Starting with your colleagues—is there diversity in terms of race and gender? Even consider ethnic background. Research has shown that patients feel more comfortable when being cared for by people who look like them. How well do you think you and your colleagues represent diversity, equity, and inclusion?

Next, think about what is represented in the pamphlets in the waiting room. What kind of posters are on the walls? Are the bathrooms separated by gender, or are they unisex? Are there a variety of appropriate options on patient forms and questionnaires that are inclusive of different gender identities, preferred pronouns, races, and relationship statuses?

Try to display materials that represent everybody. How a patient is made to feel comfortable in the waiting room can greatly influence the rest of their experience in your practice.  

4. How do you promote DEI in your NP practice?

Let’s dive a little deeper! How can you promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in your NP practice?

Diversity

You can get involved with the hiring process in the clinic or even start discussions about how the environment can be more inclusive, like we mentioned above.

Also, look for ways to support the diversity of patients. Is there a way to expand access to patients with different insurances? For example, can you become credentialed to accept patients from Medicare/Medicaid or a wider variety of private insurances? Or, can you work to create a sliding scale payment schedule for patients without insurance? Those initiatives can certainly help underserved populations.

Equity 

In terms of equity, we need to make sure that we and our colleagues have the tools needed to serve our patients well. For example, if we’re expanding access to new patients, are there any foreseeable language barriers? Do we have an interpreter service? Can we print instructions in different languages?

Remember that equity comes back to are we treating everyone equally, which means we need to have the resources to do that.

Inclusion

To be more inclusive, think about ways to “include.” Are we respectful in our conversations with staff and colleagues, and we were really taking into consideration what they are saying? Are we working together with an open mind?

We cannot make meaningful change if we stay in our own little bubbles. We can always learn from other people!

Communication

With our patients, inclusivity has a lot to do with our communication. Are we using patient-centered language? Are we communicating, both verbally and nonverbally, in a way that makes patients feel welcomed and feel heard? Do we value and respect the decisions our patients are making, and of course, are we explaining things in a way that patients understand to be able to make their own decisions?

For extra help with communicating with patients, check out these other posts on the blog!

💜 6 Tips for Communicating with Patients as an NP
💜 4 Common Communication Challenges for New NPs

Additional Resources

There are so many facets to diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives from cultural competency to addressing health disparities and social determinants of health. We highly recommend taking additional training on patient-centered communication, cultural competency, and unconscious or implicit bias. You can also check out this evolving guide on inclusive language from Rosh Review!

5. How can you further promote DEI in healthcare?

Let’s take that passion and talk about how you can get involved and create a positive change. The best way to do that is to become an advocate!

Become an AANP Member

One place to start is with the AANP. As a member, you can join special interest and practice groups, and AANP has one devoted to health equity, diversity, and inclusion. There is an annual fee in addition to the membership fee, but if you have a passion for DEI, it would be a great place to promote change!

Join DEI Committees

Many nursing and medical associations have DEI committees that members can join. For example, the National Association of Pediatric Nurse Practitioners (NAPNAP) has a DEI committee and the American College of Cardiologists has an entire resource center devoted to DEI education and promotion for clinicians.

Be a Role Model

Don’t forget about how important being a role model is for making positive change. Demonstrate in your clinical practice what it means to be equitable and inclusive. Help to draft a DEI statement for your clinical practice. Share training opportunities with your staff and colleagues so that everyone can learn and grow together. 

You can also get involved in DEI initiatives in your local community. There are so many opportunities!

Final Thoughts

DEI in healthcare is a huge topic and can feel a little overwhelming. Hopefully this post leaves you feeling invigorated for change and looking at things in your clinical practice with more of an open mind. Remember to never stop learning and growing! All of us here at SMNP Reviews are rooting for you. 💜