Our Goals
Goal #1: Patients
Ensure that PATIENTS of all races, ethnicities, and cultures are afforded safe, high-quality, equitable, and antiracist clinical care.
By addressing issues such as health disparities, access and implicit bias in the clinical setting, RWJBarnabas Health seeks to ensure high-quality and reliable health care for all of its patients.
“In spite of all the patient data is collected, the overall appearance of patients remain a factor in how treatment is rendered.”
THE FACTS:
- Black men are 2.5 times more likely to die from prostate cancer compared to white non-Hispanic men. (Dess, 2019)
- African Americans have 2.3 times the infant mortality rate as non-Hispanic whites. (HHS, OMH, 2020)
- End of life care is $6,100 more for Hispanic patients than white patients. (Byoff, 2016)
- Black patients wait 16 minutes longer in the ED than white patients. (Qiao, 2016)
- Black & Hispanic patients are more likely to be uninsured than white patients. (Buchmueller, 2020)
Goal #2: Workforce
Offer members of all races, ethnicities, and cultures of the RWJBarnabas Health workforce a nurturing, equitable, and antiracist environment in which to work, that affords professional development opportunities, potential for growth, and avenues for their voices to be heard.
Equal pay, representation in leadership, and retention of quality candidates are issues that have plagued the healthcare system. RWJBarnabas Health will review policies, practices and procedures to ensure greater equity for its workforce.
“I've been punched, kicked, spat on, called Black monkey by patients I care for. I have been excluded by my colleagues from different events because I wasn’t part of their race.”
THE FACTS:
- Research shows that when health care providers and patients share the same race health outcomes are improved, 56% of the active physicians in the US are white, 17% are Asian, 6% are Hispanic (of all races), and 5% are Black.
Goal #3: Communities
Contribute to the equitable health and elimination of disparities within the COMMUNITIES it serves by leveraging the power of its anchor institutions to stimulate local economies, specifically by buying, hiring, and investing in local efforts that are known to promote positive health outcomes.
With the mission of creating healthier communities, RWJBarnabas Health has long committed to increasing health equity in the communities it serves. Addressing issues such as food insecurity, housing affordability, and community development, the System will work to promote equity.
“We need to make more effective, tangible changes in the organization and the COMMUNITY. We know that racism is everywhere. No way can we be antiracist as a system if we don't make positive, meaningful changes in our community.”
THE FACTS:
- Due to redlining and other predatory practices, minorities have disproportionately been shut out of the wealth building opportunity of homeownership. In 2019, the homeownership rate for White Americans was 74%, as compared to Black Americans at 44%, Asian, Native, Hawaiian and Pacific Islander 58% and Hispanics (of any race) 48%. (US Census)
- When Black and brown students are concentrated in low-income, segregated schools, resources are lacking, resulting in achievement gaps of up to 3 grade levels. (Reardon, 2019)
- According to the USDA, 22.5% of Black households and 18.5% of Hispanic households are food insecure, both higher than the national average of 12.3%. (USDA, Economic Research Service)
Goal #4: Operational
Review and revise OPERATIONAL processes and procedures that fall outside of the aforementioned areas to ensure the promotion of an antiracist environment.
Review of critical operational areas such as IT, finance, communications, procurement, and legal, RWJBarnabas Health will ensure that the departments that support our patients, workforce, and communities are operating with an eye towards equity.
“I believe that the greatest challenge to racism is denial and acceptance. The country as a whole needs to accept that it was founded on racist principles that are a fundamental part of how our country works everyday…The problem persists because our society was founded on it and sustained by it economically, which has made it nearly impossible to get rid of.”
THE FACTS:
Market segmentation, paired with culturally adapted messaging aids in better engaging, retaining, and prompting patients towards healthier outcomes. (Deloitte, 2018)
