Capital Health Regional Medical Center and Capital Health Medical Center – Hopewell recently announced their individual “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” designations in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 15th anniversary edition of the Healthcare Equality Index (HEI), the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey of health care facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees. A record 906 health care facilities actively participated in the 2022 HEI survey, and 496 of those earned an “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” designation.
“Administered by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the Healthcare Equality Index survey is an important benchmark,” said Dr. Eric I. Schwartz, vice president of Community Health and Transformation and executive director of Capital Health’s Institute for Urban Care. “This designation demonstrates our ongoing commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion for the communities we serve and the support we provide for our employees.”
The HEI evaluates and scores health care facilities on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars, including foundational policies and training in LGBTQ+ patient-centered care, LGBTQ+ patient services and support, employee benefits and policies, and patient and community engagement. In the 2022 report, an impressive 496 facilities earned HRC’s “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” designation, receiving the maximum score in each section and earning an overall score of 100. Another 251 facilities earned the “Top Performer” designation with scores between 80 and 95 points and at least partial credit in each section. With 82% of participating facilities scoring 80 points or more, health care facilities are demonstrating concretely that they are going beyond the basics when it comes to adopting policies and practices in LGBTQ+ care.
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation is the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), America's largest civil rights organization working to achieve equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ+) people. Through its programs, the HRC Foundation seeks to make transformational change in the everyday lives of LGBTQ+ people, shedding light on inequity and deepening the public’s understanding of LGBTQ+ issues, with a clear focus on advancing transgender and racial justice.