One of the major objectives of the Center is to design and attract support from government, foundations and the private sector to advance its mission. To that end, CHE staff has undertaken several projects that take advantage of their expertise in research, information development and dissemination, curriculum development, data analysis and policy, as well as a strong focus on collaboration. The externally funded projects, listed below, reflect current grant or contract awards to the Center.
National Resource Center on Advancing Emergency Preparedness for Culturally Diverse Communities
With support from the Office of Minority Health, US Department of Health and Human Services, CHE is developing a web-based National Resource Center focused on public health emergency preparedness for culturally diverse communities. The National Resource Center will serve as a comprehensive online database of resources and an information exchange portal to facilitate communication, networking and collaboration in the field. It will feature hundreds of annotated and cross-referenced resources, including but not limited to those that highlight promising and best practices, successful programs, research, training and education curriculum, measurement and evaluation tools and effective emergency risk communication strategies. News, updates and events within the field will also be featured. To learn more about the National Resource Center, please visit www.diversitypreparedness.org.
National Consensus Panel on Emergency Preparedness and Cultural Diversity
CHE received support from the Office of Minority Health, US Department of Health and Human Services, to develop a National Consensus Panel on Emergency Preparedness and Cultural Diversity. The mission of the Panel is to provide guidance to national, state and local agencies and organizations on the development of effective strategies to advance public health emergency preparedness and eliminate disparities for racially and ethnically diverse communities across all phases of an emergency. The Panel’s objectives are to: (1) develop a National Consensus Statement on integrating racially and ethnically diverse communities into preparedness; (2) establishing guiding principles of what would comprise a culturally competent approach to preparedness; (3) developing sector-specific guidance on culturally competent preparedness strategies and activities; and (4) providing guidance on promising and best practices. The Panel is comprised of 33 leading national, state and local government, academic, not-for-profit and for-profit organizations representing emergency management, homeland security, health care, public health, risk communication, cultural competence and racially and ethnically diverse communities across the nation.
Click here for more information on the National Consensus Panel.
National Partnership for Cultural Competence in Health Care
CHE has received funding from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation to assess the feasibility and value of, and develop a plan for creating a national organization to address racial and ethnic disparities in health and improve cultural competence in health care. Among its activities under this grant, CHE is: (1) conducting a comprehensive review of organizations, foundations, private-sector and government-sponsored initiatives aimed at cultural competence in health care and the reduction of health disparities; and (2) interviewing community leaders, experts, government officials and individuals from leading national organizations to seek their guidance and determine their willingness to participate in such a partnership. Click here for survey and further information.
National Conference Series on Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations
We are proud to announce that Drexel’s School of Public Health in collaboration with Resources for Cross Cultural Health Care, and the federal Office of Minority Health are sponsoring the Sixth National Conference on Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations from September 21-24, 2008 in Minneapolis, MN. Please save the date as we hope that a broad representation of interested faculty and staff will attend the conference. We encourage you to learn more about the conference at www.DiversityRxConference.org.
The theme for the Sixth National Conference will be “Partnerships for the future: Supporting practitioners and advancing the field through innovation, policy and research.” Starting with a look at the national and global trends in health care and immigration, the conference will use plenary sessions, workshops and moderated dialogues with conference participants to:
- Address the needs and concerns that affect day-to-day practice of culturally appropriate care at the clinical, organizational and community level
- Develop a vision for advancing the field
- Continue the integration of cultural competence/disparity reduction in mainstream health care priorities.
Please visit http://www.DiversityRxConference.org/ for more information about the conference, including agendas and presentation abstracts from previous years. The Call for Presentation Proposals is open and will close on January 31, 2008.
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The national conference series has held biennial conferences for 500 participants since 1998 across the country. Participants include beginner and expert audiences concerned with culturally competent health care, including: health care managers and staff, from community-based clinics to managed care systems; health professionals in practice and education; consumers and representatives from diverse communities; and individuals concerned with financing, quality improvement, policy, and research. Since its first national meeting in New York City, this conference series has emphasized a public-private blend of community advocacy, service delivery, policy-making, civil rights enforcement, research and leadership development to improve the health of diverse populations. Cross-cutting themes in conference sessions stress practical innovations, while presentations on cutting-edge research have offered continuity over time where experts have presented their design and early findings at one conference and announced their intention to discuss their final report at the next. Communication extends beyond the conference through posting of supporting materials, proceedings and announcements on the DiversityRx website website, and a moderated listserv on cultural competence practice, CLAS-talk. The Fifth National Conference was held on October 17-20, 2006. Please visit the conference website for more information, or click here for our report on Conference events.
Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health -- Philadelphia Community Health Empowerment Program
CHE, along with a number of university and community partners, is collaborating with The Arthur Ashe Institute for Urban Health (AAIUH), to implement its unique “Community Health Empowerment Program” in Philadelphia. AAIUH received funding from the Philadelphia Public Health Department under the STEPS to a Healthier Philadelphia Initiative to work with beauty salons as educational sites to increase awareness of diabetes, asthma, nutrition and physical activity of African American women in West Philadelphia and Latina women in North Philadelphia. CHE’s main involvement focuses on developing and conducting the evaluation of health education programs at the salons. To learn more, please visit the AAIUH website.
Cultural Competence Leadership Fellowship Curriculum Development
The Health Research and Education Trust, an affiliate of the American Hospital Association, has contracted with CHE staff to assist in creating a new training and education program for hospital executives and other professionals, The Cultural Competence Leadership Fellowship. In addition to providing overall guidance for fellowship development, CHE staff is creating the curriculum for the first sessions, “Module 1: “Looking at Yourself and Your Community.” The Cultural Competence Leadership Fellowship is designed to advance the process of creating culturally competent organizations and to promote breakthroughs in addressing health care disparities and in improving health outcomes for culturally and racially diverse individuals. A collaborative learning community will provide Fellows with opportunities to develop the leadership and technical skills necessary to create, identify and implement culturally competent strategies and practices in health care and to foster the development of a diverse workforce. For additional information on this project please visit the Cultural Competence Leadership Fellowship online.
Environmental Scan of Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services
The environmental scan identifies leading organizations across the US that are conducting significant work in the area of culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS). Currently, our environmental scan covers over 100 organizations conducting a broad range of activities in the field of cultural and linguistic competence. The scan includes activities being conducted in a variety of settings, including government entities, universities, non-profit organizations, community based organizations, and the private sector. The environmental scan table can be found on the DiversityRx website.