Striving Toward Health and Racial Equity in Our Community and Our Industry
By Dr. Julia Joseph-Di Caprio, Joy Marsh and Pleasant Radford Jr.,
Published
October 30, 2021
Even before the events of 2020 highlighted our society’s racial and economic inequities, UCare made health and racial equity a key mission for the organization. We seek to identify instances where systemic racism and other forms of ingrained inequities have negatively impacted populations and take active steps to root them out. Our goal: making health care more accessible and accommodating to those denied the care they deserve.
At UCare, health and racial equity is core to our mission. We define health and racial equity as ensuring everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible.
UCare is committed to anti-racism — identifying and dismantling systems, policies and procedures that advantage one group over another.
The causes of health and racial inequities include:
- Food insecurity: A lack of nearby healthful food
- Housing insecurity: People struggling to sustain basic housing needs often lack the time or resources for health care
- Transportation: A lack of reliable, convenient transportation to providers
- Digital access: Lack of high-speed internet and digital literacy can hamper use of online tools
- Provider bias: Health care workers may alter care based on assumptions about diverse patients
- Trust: Communities that have faced racism in health care may be leery of medical advice
The impact on our community is huge: a University of Minnesota health disparities study found that preventable deaths caused by racial disparities cost the state from $1.2 to $2.9 billion each year.
UCare uses data to identify patterns in health outcomes among our members.
We also need to listen to communities to find out why those patterns exist. Only then can we remove real-world barries for members.
Some examples of ways UCare has helped promote health and racial equity include:
- Collaborating with local leaders to build trust in COVID-19 vaccines and overcoming barriers to getting the shots
- Arranging transportation to providers for members of Medicaid programs
- Partnering with The Food Group to get healthy food to communities that lack it
- Supporting a program to help people get their GED
- Offering culturally specific support to pregnant women from diverse communities
- Offering online health and racial equity training resources for providers in Culture Care Connection
UCare has made a commitment to being an anti-racist organization. We recognize we need to take a close look at our own systems, policies and procedures.
We established a new Equity and Inclusion Department and are taking employee- and member-informed action to advance health and racial equity.
The racial disparities we see today are the result of hundreds of years of policy and practice. We believe the work to promote health and racial equity must be just as widespread and consistent. It’s a long road, but one we know is worth traveling.
Dr. Julia Joseph-Di Caprio
PRESIDENT, LEAP PEDIATRIC AND ADOLESCENT CARE (FORMER EVP/CHIEF MEDICAL OFFICER AT UCARE)
Joy Marsh
ASSOCIATE VICE PRESIDENT OF EQUITY AND INCLUSION
Pleasant Radford Jr.
HEALTH EQUITY OFFICER
Dr. Julia, Joy and Pleasant are all engaged in UCare’s efforts to work towards greater health and racial equity for our members, identifying the underlying barriers to positive health outcomes and helping develop ways to overcome them.
Promoting Anti-Bias and Anti-Racism
Training in
Health Care
UCare and the Minnesota Medical Association have teamed up for a two-year initiative to help continue the process of dismantling structural racism within Minnesota’s health care system. The initiative will focus on:
- Creating implicit bias and anti-racism training materials for providers
- Delivering these resources and training to care workers
- Enabling the sharing of equity-focused ideas and practices across organizations
- Developing metrics for accountability
- Building trust between Black, Indigenous and People of Color communities and Minnesota health care organizations
