Cultural Diversity in Health Care: Website review
It is beyond doubt that the needs of all people regardless of their ethnicity, age, gender, religion, and so on must be met in all spheres. Work is one of the basic human activity areas. In this context, cultural diversity studies are of primary importance: to succeed, companies that communicate with numerous individuals of different backgrounds should take into account these characteristics. On the other hand, health care issues are equally significant because almost everyone interacts with doctors, nurses, and other specialists.
Thus, the website of Health eCareers, one of the leading recruitment and career information organizations within the health care industry, is chosen. With a network of more than 2.4 million job applicants, thousands of health care recruiters, and more than 100 exclusive association partners, the company is intended to suit qualified health care specialists with medical providers searching for top talent (About us, n.d.).
The purpose of this paper is to examine the company’s website. In this respect, the present-day cultural diversity in health care is explored. Further, the company’s approach to cultural issues is viewed. Finally, the achieved progress and plans are described.
At the present stage of development, cultural diversity has become a matter of discussion. While minority populations are steadily increasing, their representation in the healthcare industry remains low: according to the statistics, Black and Hispanic Americans are only 9% of the physician workforce, and only 12% of U.S. medical school graduates are Black, Hispanic, and Native American (Does healthcare have a diversity problem? 2015).
The situation with nurses is not much better: approximately 19% of RNs are from minority backgrounds. At the same time, the patient composition is culturally diverse: for instance, white minorities only constitute about one-third of all patients. As a result, the difference between patients and health care specialists influences interaction, communication, trust, and health outcomes.
Health eCareers promotes awareness of cultural diversity among its clients. The section “News & Advice” exemplifies this principle: there is an abundance of articles and other materials concerning minorities and the ways to assist them. Judging by the contents of the website, the company also concentrates on diversity-focused Internet pages. “Find Job” and “Find Employer” sections represent many job advertisements and organizations that collaborate with culturally diverse individuals. Besides, the company cooperates with the Department of Workforce Services, career counseling advisors at colleges, and local minority groups (Does healthcare have a diversity problem? 2015).
One can also track that Health eCareers advertises its jobs on websites to cover a larger audience. Posted photos and videos prove that the staff is also diverse. Overall, the company draws attention to minorities’ demands and takes action to improve the situation, and website exploitation is an integral part of this process.
These measures bring positive results. At the beginning of 2015, positive job growth for all diverse groups was registered: there was a 10.9% increase in demand for diverse talent in comparison with December 2014 (Does healthcare have a diversity problem? 2015). In the future, the company plans to enlarge the list of its partners and continue promoting jobs for culturally diverse people.
To sum it up, the Health eCareers website reflects the company’s approach to the cultural diversity issue. It not only contains many useful articles about minorities and possible solutions but also connects employers with professionals of different backgrounds via job advertisements and direct interaction with partners and minority constituencies. Thus, the study of cultural diversity may use the example of Health eCareers to describe probable measures in cultural diversity activities.
References
About us. (n.d.). Web.
Does healthcare have a diversity problem? (2015). Web.