The executive leadership team of Mount Sinai’s Office for Diversity and Inclusion, from left, Pamela Y. Abner, MPA; Gary C. Butts, MD; and Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH, MPH.
For the second consecutive year, the Mount Sinai Health System has ranked No.1 on the “Top 12 Hospitals and Health Systems” list of DiversityInc, the nation’s leading publication in advancing diversity management.
Among the best practices that led to Mount Sinai’s honor on the 2018 list were advancing the care of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender patients; creating a women’s advocacy employee resource group; and increasing the focus on people with disabilities. In ranking the top hospitals and health systems, DiversityInc used a 300-question survey of criteria, including talent pipeline, talent development, leadership commitment, and supplier diversity.
Mount Sinai works to meet those criteria and then exceed them, a strategy that helped the Health System rise to No. 3 on the 2016 list, and to No. 1 for the last two years. “We should celebrate that, acknowledge all the hard work that went into getting to this point, and then look forward,” says Gary C. Butts, MD, Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer, Mount Sinai Health System, and Dean for Diversity Programs, Policy and Community Affairs, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai.
The overarching goal is to make diversity and inclusion an integral part of the Health System’s “organizational fabric,” says Pamela Y. Abner, MPA, Vice President and Chief Administrative Officer of the Office for Diversity and Inclusion (ODI). She and Dr. Butts are the executive leadership team of ODI, along with Chief Program Officer Ann-Gel Palermo, DrPH, MPH, Associate Dean for Diversity in Biomedicine, Icahn School of Medicine. “Diversity works when it becomes part of an organization’s thinking and vision and planning,” Ms. Abner says. “If you are addressing a patient, choosing a vendor, or mentoring staff, you should ask, ‘Am I being inclusive?’”
ODI is continuing to expand education and training about unconscious bias, in close coordination with the Health System’s efforts to improve the patient experience, since biases can affect care. “Race can be part of it, but it can be age, it can be where you come from, or how you speak,” Ms. Abner says. The office also focuses on community engagement, for example, helping minority- and women-owned businesses get certified and signed on as vendors with Mount Sinai. Its three other domains of focus are diversity in hiring and promotion; employee engagement; and disparity in the quality and outcomes of health care.
“Of all the lifting, addressing health care disparities is the heaviest lift,” Dr. Butts says. With guidance from the New York State Department of Health, Mount Sinai is now piloting a standardized system for capturing data on patients’ race, ethnicity, and gender. “We expect that once the processes are right, and the data are accurate, then we can demonstrate whether there are variations in care and the outcomes of care,” he says. “And then we can make the case for more targeted, culturally tailored interventions.”
Other challenges remain, such as improving recruitment and retention, and increasing racial and ethnic diversity in upper management. But Dr. Butts took a pause to reflect on his office’s progress. “I am proud of the strength and integrity of our team and our partners across the system,” he says. “And I am inspired by the persistence and promise of our young people,” referring to programs, including the Center for Excellence in Youth Education, in which ODI mentors and supports students in underserved groups from middle school to medical school. Finally, Dr. Butts says, “I am proud that our community at Mount Sinai—the senior leadership particularly—is embracing diversity and inclusion. That gives me hope that we can advance and sustain the work we are doing and have an even greater impact.”