UCLA Health received a perfect score and the designation of “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Healthcare Equality Index (HEI). The Human Rights Campaign Foundation calls the report “the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey of healthcare facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees.”
“This designation is a testament to our commitment to fostering leading equity, diversity and inclusion practices across the organization, to build a culture that welcomes all,” said Medell Briggs-Malonson, MD, MPH, MSHS, Chief of Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion for the UCLA Health and associate professor of emergency medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
The HEI evaluates and scores healthcare facilities on detailed criteria falling under four central pillars:
- Foundational Policies and Training in LGBTQ+ Patient-Centered Care;
- LGBTQ+ Patient Services and Support;
- Employee Benefits and Policies; and,
- Patient and Community Engagement.
UCLA Health was one of 496 facilities to earned HRC’s “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” designation, receiving the maximum score in each section and earning an overall score of 100.
The remarkable progress reflected in the 2022 HEI includes:
- 93% of participants met the HEI's training requirements, completing more than 200,000 hours of staff training in LGBTQ+ patient-centered care.
- 82% of participating facilities earned either the Leader or Top Performer.
- 99% of HEI participants documented that they include both “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” in their patient non-discrimination policy.
- 99% of HEI participants documented that they include both “sexual orientation” and “gender identity” in their employment nondiscrimination policy.
- 81% of HEI participants offer transgender-inclusive healthcare benefits to their employees, up from 75% in 2019, which was the first year it was required in order to obtain Leader status.
