Addressing Health Inequity: 5 Best Practices for Facilities

Health equity is about enabling people to achieve their best possible health by aligning assistance and resources with populational needs. Health inequity occurs when fair and just opportunities are denied, leading to preventable disparities in patient outcomes. These are most often experienced by patients within Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, across genders, and by the LGBTQ+ population.

For example, African Americans are 30% more likely than their White peers to experience premature morbidity from heart disease in the U.S., while gay and bisexual men account for 81% of all new HIV infection cases. Given that these examples are only two of many alarming statistics, our healthcare system has both a moral and professional obligation to act.

Although the issues themselves are complex, taking action doesn’t have to be. We’ll provide an overview of this important healthcare topic and highlight best practices for addressing inequity at your facility. Armed with information and a guide for practical steps forward, you’ll be able to empower your patients and staff to contribute to a healthier, more equitable future for all.

What Is a Health Disparity? How Does It Relate to Inequity?

The statistics above highlight health disparities — differences in health that largely affect vulnerable populations such as BIPOC Americans, women, and people from the LGBTQ+ community. Sources of health disparities are numerous, including factors such as body size and socioeconomic status.

If this seems to overlap with the health inequity definition, you’re on the right track. Health disparities are the metrics used to inform overall equity (or the lack thereof). Put simply, they’re the source for determining whether equity within healthcare (and among health statuses) has been achieved.

Health Inequity vs. Inequality: Examples and Explanation

These terms sound alike, but they’re not the same. Health inequality refers to the measurable difference in risk, status, or outcomes of health experiences between two or more populations. Inequity refers to the same differences, but — unlike instances of inequality — is caused by unjust and unavoidable systems, and therefore may be mitigated through changes in these systems.

So, where inequality is simply the term used for the unequal distribution of health status, health inequities measure the failure to address those inequalities (as evidenced by health disparities).

What Are the Causes of Health Inequalities and Inequities?

Health inequality can be due to a variety of sources and risk factors. These include intrinsic factors (like genetics) and environmental factors (such as where a person lives). However, the latter often begins to shift the conversation toward health inequities, which can be attributed to many systemic barriers, including:

• Racism and bias.
• Social determinants.
• Geographical determinants.
• Socioeconomic barriers (like high costs or no insurance coverage).
• Lack of political representation or advocacy.
• Access issues (for example, medical deserts).
• Technical literacy and communication gaps.

Addressing Inequity for Healthcare Facilities: 5 Best Practices

Positive patient outcomes are the central aim of almost every healthcare objective. By taking steps to target the challenges preventing many patients from achieving their best possible health status, facility leaders and managers can help lead the charge against systemic, big-picture issues. Here are some practical ways to start advocating for your vulnerable patients today.

1. Prioritize Patient Relationship Management

Instances of healthcare’s mistreatment of marginalized people is rife throughout history. For instance, African Americans are particularly distrusting of providers and care team members due to abuses such as the infamous Tuskegee Syphilis Study. Therefore, it’s imperative that facilities work to regain that lost credibility to help increase engagement with care plans.

Tips:

• Studies have demonstrated that African Americans trust health information from general sources more than from a sole provider. Consider health campaigns and large-scale outreach for targeting specific populations and health needs.
• Encourage patient decision-making strategies and frameworks to strengthen autonomy within the care setting and display a desire for care to be cooperative rather than authoritative.

2. Increase and Facilitate Healthcare Access

To address their health needs, patients must be able to reach the required services. For many — whether due to rural living situations or transportation challenges — this presents a real barrier to care plan adherence. Consider the ways you can remove this obstacle for patients, maybe through investing in more remote care technologies or by making care teams more mobile.

Tips:

• Utilize in-house champions to teach patients how to communicate via portals and how to use remote technology before leaving the healthcare setting to ensure its successful implementation from home.
• Invest in your staff and efforts to reduce burnout and attrition. Lack of providers and clinicians is a driving factor of long appointment times and delayed scheduling.

3. Invest in Health Inequity Training and Awareness

Education is a crucial component of any campaign for better health equity. Staff need to understand how deep-rooted many biases are — to the point of being unconsciously held. Without addressing the issues and highlighting their significance to patient outcomes, nothing is likely to change.

Tips:

• Identify a team of motivated (ideally, interdisciplinary) professionals to lead a committee that is focused on continuously educating themselves and peers on issues related to systemic health inequities, racism, and implicit bias.
• Consider investing in formal education events or expert visits. The variation from the standard day-to-day may help the symposium or lecture leave a more lasting impact.

4. Empower Community-Healthcare Partnerships

Healthcare organizations are often deeply embedded within the community far beyond their facility borders. By collaborating with existing (or new) partners, healthcare leadership can gain insight into patient needs from alternative perspectives, while leveraging those connections to better target primary care and health maintenance measures.

Tips:

• Consider collaborating with community-held events to sponsor pop-up clinics in areas with high-volume foot traffic as a way to boost accessibility and visibility.
• Address the basics of health needs — like food security — by partnering with local grocers or farmers to distribute unsellable produce or help incentivize budget-conscious, healthy-eating educational events.

5. Revise Facility Policies and Protocols Around Equity

Consider starting your change management process from the very top by addressing the desire for equitable health outcomes within your mission statement. If these measures guide practice and the motivation behind care approaches, then health equity needs to be embedded within those directives.

Tips:

• Consider establishing equity metrics within year-end performance evaluations and as part of organizational goal tracking.
• Add equity to your list of quality indicators and safety trackers. Because it affects patient outcomes and wellbeing, it deserves to be treated with the same seriousness as patient falls and healthcare-associated infections.

Align Your Policies and Procedures With Today’s Healthcare Challenges

Protect your patients from health inequity and the effects of health inequalities in society by keeping up with the top issues facing patients today. IntelyCare can help you with that — use our facility guides and best practice recommendations to drive the change that’s truly needed.