Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion

DEI Strategic Plan (2024-2026)

Our equity and inclusion Strategic Plan is designed to address workforce, organization, and health equity. We partner with several departments to implement our plan including Maternal Newborn Health, Supply Chain and Construction Management, Hospice and Ambulatory Care, Marketing, Quality & Patient Safety, Talent Acquisition and Human Resources.

Our goals over the next three years are:

• Continually improve workforce engagement, recruitment, and retention
• Design and implement a safe and equitable environment for all our workforce
• Establish a systematic process to expand, modify, or create new offerings
• Assume accountability for more effectively managing the health of patients

DE&I Scorecard

At GBMC HealthCare, we make our vision bold and clear. We want to provide a safe, healing, culturally competent healthcare experience to every patient, every time with the care we would want for our own loved ones.  

Some of our efforts to improve health equity include:

• Maryland Health Equity Resource Act—In 2019, GBMC partnered with Helping Up Mission (HUM) to ensure its growing number of clients received coordinated and comprehensive primary care services. 

  

  In 2022, GBMC received a multi-year, $1.5 million grant from the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission (CHRC)*. This funding was awarded under the Maryland Health Equity Resource Act, legislation approved by the Maryland General Assembly. Under the program, GBMC Health Partners Primary Care—Jonestown expanded and the Gilchrist Elder Medical Care (EMC) program provides in-home medical care to residents, focusing on improving preventive healthcare and chronic disease management, specifically hypertension, obesity, and diabetes.

• Maryland Maternal Health Innovation Program Participant (MDMOM)—The MDMOM Hospital Initiative promotes equity and safety through quality improvement activities that address the conditions placing Maryland mothers’ lives at risk. Included in this initiative are learning modules that address implicit bias, the impact of structural racism on maternal health outcomes, and bias in the care of patients with substance use disorder.
• Institute of Healthcare Improvement Participant—IHI’s mission is to improve health and healthcare worldwide. IHI is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion and being an anti-racist organization. Ideally, equity, as with all of IHI’s values, is embedded in all systems, processes, and actions. At IHI, holding equity as one of the core values means: We work to develop and maintain systems, policies, and procedures to eliminate gaps in our organization and in our work.

• Health Equality Index Participant—

  

  The Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) is the national LGBTQ+ benchmarking tool that evaluates healthcare facilities' policies and practices related to the equity and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees. The HEI 2022 evaluates more than 2,200 healthcare facilities nationwide.

• Let’s Lead Participant—A Leaders in Equity and Diversity Collaborative through the Maryland Hospital Association brings together healthcare delivery organizations for specific, action-oriented learning, targeting meaningful outcomes and focusing on minority aging populations to live a healthier, productive life.
• Listening Sessions—Listening sessions are 1-2 hour meetings that provide an opportunity to hear directly from patients, staff, families, or other community members. In 2020, the DEI Council worked with the Hospice and Palliative Care Network of Maryland to explore barriers to hospice and palliative care utilization among communities of color in Howard County. To better understand barriers to hospice and primary care, the DEI Council Outreach Committee conducted a listening session series focused on the Jonestown neighborhood in southeast Baltimore City. The DEI Outreach Committee works with leaders in the healthcare system and the broader community to facilitate and consult on listening sessions.

The following are internal activities developed and supported by the DE&I Council at GBMC aim to celebrate GBMC diversity:

• Employee Resource Groups
• Inclusive Leadership Practices
• Monthly Learning Forums
• Celebrations, Programs, Awards and more!

Celebrations & Programs:

Black History Month program

Martin Luther King, Jr. Day program

Transgender Day of Remembrance

Asian American Pacific Islander Heritage Month

Juneteenth program

Women of Impact awards & Women's History Month program

Pride Month & Baltimore Pride Parade

• SWANA Heritage Month
• Mental Health Awareness Month
• Veterans Day
• LGBTQ+ Health Awareness Week
• Hispanic Heritage Month Program
• National Coming Out Day
• Filipino Heritage Month Program