Alvin Powell, MD was featured speaker at Thursday’s HASC Diversity, Equity and Inclusion group meeting.

Two dozen attendees discussed how the history of hospital desegregation can help chart paths forward at HASC’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Roundtable on Nov. 5. 

Dr. Alvin Caldwell Powell, chief health equity officer at North Carolina-based system Cone Health was the featured speaker. He offered a unique historical view — Cone Hospital was at the center of a 1963 legal decision that desegregated hospitals across the region. 

Powell is one of a growing group of hospital administrators who hold positions dedicated to advancing equity. While Cone Health has been on the crest of the wave of change, he was surprised when his team charted the extent of health inequity in its own community. 

“You need metrics to tell the story,” he told this week’s participants. “If you can’t measure it, you can’t monitor change.”

Powell’s work group uncovered multiple “medical deserts” in their service area. They also found surprising disparities in colorectal screening rates between white, African-American, Hispanic and Asian groups. 

Now they’re moving to effect change. Cone Health plans to open new clinics for neighborhoods lacking services, and is implementing new pushes to communicate the value of health screenings.

Hospital leaders in the HASC region can launch similar initiatives, Powell told this week’s attendees.

“The iron is hot, the movement is here,” he related. “Now is the time to create a sense of urgency and talk to your leadership.”

Director of organizational development at Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital and meeting participant Jennifer Herrera said the facility has more work to do to update its culture.

“We have more work to do inside in terms of creating safety of conversation,” she said.

Cedars-Sinai CNO Linda Burnes Bolton noted her organization began as a haven for groups excluded from other facilities.

“I know our history,” said Burnes Bolton, also senior vice president for health equity for Cedars. ”The issue is getting everyone on the bus and being committed to moving forward.”

Future HASC-hosted discussions on diversity, equity and inclusion are scheduled for Jan. 7, March 4, May 6, July 8 and Sept. 2. Learn more about HASC’s DEI initiative here.

With questions, please contact HASC Workforce Development Program Manager Lisa Mitchell. 

Contact:
Lisa Mitchell
(213) 538-0722
lmitchell@hasc.org