Community Health Centers proudly trace their origins to the civil rights era when they embraced the mission to provide access to care for underserved individuals, some of whom had been denied care because of their skin color. At that time, many health centers confronted health inequities associated with race. The disproportionate COVID morbidity and mortality rates and growing awareness of disparate rates of police killings of people of color demonstrate that these inequities remain, and that structural racism continues to impact health and well-being of health center patients.
HRSA’s Bureau of Health Professions released a report in 2006 presenting evidence supporting a diverse health workforce as strategically essential to improving access to care for patients belonging to minority populations. How are health centers living up to the civil rights legacy today? What is the state of, and how are health centers attempting to achieve, racial/ethnic diversity among its staff and leadership? What barriers exist and how can they be minimized if health centers are to establish themselves as anti-racist organizations? This session will highlight evidence supporting the value of a diverse health workforce and engage health center leaders in a discussion of how to achieve and sustain workforce diversity.