Karen Alkire leads discussion at the DEI Summit
The Zubrow Auditorium was abuzz on September 29th for the second annual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Summit, where staff gathered in person, and remotely, to hold conversations on boosting DEI efforts at PAH and the communities it serves.
Established in 2020, PAH’s DEI Committee consists of six workgroups focused on the topics of Clinical, Community, Culture, Education, People, and Research. The summit, hosted by the Committee, was centered on the theme “The Path Forward.”
“The committee wanted to capture what we have learned in the past two years, determine where we are currently regarding our DEI progress, and brainstorm where we go from here,” said Karen Alkire, a quality and training specialist and chair of the Education workgroup.
Florencia Greer Polite, MD
Florencia Greer Polite, MD, chief of the division of General Obstetrics and Gynecology, served as a keynote speaker and addressed how staff can personally combat racial bias in their lives and be an active ally for others. “Allyship is an active process of initiating, organizing, educating, and being constantly part of the solution, as opposed to potentially being part of the problem,” she said.
Each workgroup presented updates on projects they initially shared at last year’s Summit, such as the Culture workgroup’s results from their focus groups, which provided a space for staff to vocalize their experiences to enhance workplace culture, and a recap of the Community workgroup’s first Juneteenth celebration. Additionally, the Education workgroup implemented an online Diversity Calendar – available on the PAH DEI Sharepoint – with an extensive list of religious observances and cultural holidays, along with learning opportunities for these occasions.
Workgroup chairs also brought forth goals for the upcoming year, and welcomed input from other attendees on DEI priorities. One goal was making DEI-centered meetings, like the Summit, more accessible for staff who want to be involved. For those with conflicting schedules, the group suggested having multiple, smaller meetings throughout the year to address this work.
“We want to make sure we are creating and maintaining an equitable environment where everybody feels heard, and that we’re working consistently towards excellent outcomes for all patients, and an inclusive culture among our peers,” said Alkire. “This work must be something that stays front of mind in everything we do at PAH.”
In January, the current workgroup chairs will be passing the torch to new chairs, listed below. Congratulations to the new DEI workgroup chairs!
- People – Maria Beatty, a clinician in Psychiatry
- Clinical – Deb Drayton, EdD, MSN, RN, NE-BC, clinical director of Medical-Surgical & Oncology
- Research – Joan Miller, a diversion prevention coordinator in Performance Improvement
- Education – Alison Schlegel, MSN, RN, CCCTM, clinical nurse education specialist
- Community – Roxana Sanchez, a social worker in Clinical Resource Managment
- Culture – Svetlana Goldshteyn, CPhT, MSHAD/MSIS, an administrative coordinator in Radiology