One webinar, “Importance of Diversity at Leadership and Board Level,” was presented by John W. Bluford, president and CEO of Truman Medical Centers in Kansas City, Mo., and John Combes, MD, president and COO of the Center for Healthcare Governance.
Mr. Bluford said diversity in governance yields diverse perspectives, which ultimately lead to better decisions and outcomes. He shared the diversity of the 31-member board of Truman Medical Centers compared with the diversity of the patient population. Dr. Combes also shared board and patient diversity from a survey of approximately 1,000 hospital boards.
Sixty-seven percent of Truman Medical Centers’ board is Caucasian and 53 percent of patients are Caucasian. In contrast, 90 percent of board members in the survey are Caucasian, whereas only 76 percent of members of communities the hospitals serve are Caucasian, according to the webinar.
At Truman Medical Centers, 23 percent of board members and 36 percent of patients are African-American. In the survey, 5 percent of board members and 9 percent of community members are African-American, according to the webinar.
The webinar is part of the Center’s Health Care in Transition education series.
More Articles on Healthcare Diversity:
Patient Safety Tool: Caring for Diverse Populations Toolkit
3 Lessons From a Culturally Sensitive Approach to Healthcare
Hospitals Without Borders: Sanford Health’s Global Health Vision
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