Health Equity
Working to ensure everyone can reach their most remarkable health.
Every human deserves the chance to be healthy. For many, good health can be hard to achieve or maintain due to a variety of social and economic factors.
At Novant Health, we recognize that these gaps exist, and we are actively working to close them. We are committed to helping every person – patients, team members and our communities at large – have access to the highest level of care for optimal wellness.
What health equity means to us.
Achieving health equity means working to give all people the personalized care they need to reach their best possible health. Reaching that goal requires strategic, focused, collaborative, ongoing efforts to address inequalities in society that are caused by historical and contemporary injustices.
Working toward health equity means addressing obstacles to wellness where they start with issues such as housing and homelessness; hunger and food scarcity; and more.
Novant Health’s efforts to promote health equity and reduce healthcare disparities are recognized by organizations such as the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Our Pledge.
- Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Care (CLAS): We believe every human being deserves to have the highest level of wellness, quality, safety, and patient experience. We pledge to ensure our team members are able and willing to take care of all patients.
- Addressing Healthcare Disparities: We believe that everyone deserves healthy and remarkable clinical outcomes. We pledge to identify and address when any person is less likely to experience equity in care.
- Education and Consulting: We believe education to understand ourselves and others is essential. We pledge to proactively provide consultation and education to ensure that the culture of our care is to seek to understand and always respect the unique needs of all patients.
- Regulatory and Recognition: We believe that every hospital, center, and clinic should practice the national standards and best practices for health equity. We pledge to meet and exceed the expectations of regulatory and accreditation standards.
- Community Health: We believe that 80% of what impacts health are the factors we experience where we are born, live, work, pray, and age. We pledge to address these social determinants of health and deliver quality care that heals and strengthens our communities.
Our investment in cultural humility education
Research has shown that cultural competence training impacts quality, safety, patient-focused care, patient satisfaction and patient outcomes (e.g., readmission rates, completion of discharge instructions, and care plan follow-up, etc.). The Joint Commission holds hospitals accountable for addressing and maintaining patient rights. These rights include the accommodation of cultural, religious and spiritual values and practices. In 2019, Novant Health partnered with Quality Interactions, a cross-cultural clinical learning provider with the goal of improving cross-cultural education. Through this program we've seen an increase in engagement, implementation and support for diversity, inclusion, equity and belonging within Novant Health.