After Quite a Long Time: Federal Cultural Competency WIN!

by Dr. Scout    Reposted at http://www.keystothecloset.blogspot.com,

Scout, Ph.D.

Director, The Fenway Institute's Network for LGBT Health Equity

with additional reporting from the esteemed Daniella Matthews-Trigg

Sometimes you really do have to wait for good things to happen. So if you didn't catch the news earlier this week we wanted to start your weekend off by reporting on the progress of a few different action alerts we ran back in... can you believe it, 2010.

Back then the Office of Minority Health was asking for input on their Cultural and Linguistically Appropriate Services. We were happy to oblige and ran a few different action alerts urging people to write in with smart ideas on how to include LGBT people in the standards for the first time. See our action alerts below:

·         ACTION ALERT: FEDERAL CULTURAL COMPETENCY STANDARDS BEING ENHANCED: OPEN COMMENT PERIOD NOW!

·         ACTION ALERT: FEDERAL CULTURAL COMPETENCY STANDARDS BEING ENHANCED: OPEN TILL 12/31/10!

The National CLAS was originally published in 2000, and provides a framework for all health organizations to address diverse populations, and provide culturally and linguistically appropriate care. The standards aim to advance health equity, improve quality, and help eliminate healthcare disparities. Importantly, hospitals and healthcare groups really pay attention to these standards.

What we're very happy to report is we now have culture! The enhanced National CLAS Standards have adopted an expanded definition of culture that now includes sexual orientation and gender identity. The implementation blueprint even urges trainings and data collection no less! Read more details in this great post from our friend Kellan on all the different changes here: New Health Services Standards Ensure Respect For LGBT Patients. Or poke around the new standards directly on the federal Think Cultural Health website.

Mostly, for all of you that wrote in back in 2010 that you wanted sexual orientation and gender identity to be included, we just wanted you to know, the long wait was worth it. 

Note to SCOUT: 

Think Cultural Health website , you can log in on that page using username: lgbthealthequity

password: Fenway2013@
you can access the whole document there.

Is This The Biggest 48 Hrs Ever for LGBT Health?

Posted on March 31, 2011 by lgbttobacco Reposted at http://keystothecloset.blogspot.com/

Scout, Ph.D., Network Director

Scout

Director, Network for LGBT Health Equity, The Fenway Institute, Boston, MA

Report issued by Institute of Medicine on March 31, 2011.

Today at 11 am sharp the feds released the long awaited Institute of Medicine Report (IOM) on LGBT Health, or as we’re calling it in Twitterland #LGBTIOM. This report finally brings the often forgotten subject of LGBT health firmly into the light of day. Changes may or may not come from it, but we will never have to work as hard again to prove LGBT health disparities exist. Now we can just say, read all about it. I waited over my computer till 11 am thinking I was itching to read every inch of the tome. But apparently what I was really more interested in was, how much press was this getting? Luckily my home organization, The Fenway Institute, brought in some expert help to make sure press was gotten, the great folk at Renna Communications. Two of our scientists, including one of my mentors, Judy Bradford, helped write the book, so it’s good to get that news out. See our special page on it here. But it’s not all about press, first step was scan the executive summary to see what it said. Nice… it’s got lots of strong language saying collect LGBT data, enhance LGBT research, pay special attention to the subsets of LGBT, like LGBT of color, transgender people, bisexuals, etc. Love all that. See the IOM info and the short report summary here. Now onto the press, here’s just some of the coverage we know about so far: ABCNews.com Reuters Advocate Bay Windows DC Metro Weekly CNN Washington Blade LA Times What else? Send us a link at lgbthealthequity@gmail.com if you see it other places. Story about Tammy Baldwin planning to re-introducing her LGBT health bill tomorrow: http://lezgetreal.com/2011/03/rep-baldwin-to-reintroduce-bill-ending-healthcare-disparity-for-lgbt-americans/ And the Associated Press put out something that’s been picked up by lots of places, USAToday, etc.: http://www.usatoday.com/yourlife/health/2011-03-31-study_of_transgender_N.htm or http://www.laramieboomerang.com/articles/2011/03/31/ap/us/us_med_gay_health.txt But the news doesn’t stop there, it was also announced at the press conference that NIH appointed an LGBT research liaison!! Love that, because we’ve been complaining to them for a while that their reception to LGBT research has been lukewarm at best. (See our testimony to them here.) But wait, there’s more… tomorrow, did you catch that it looks like Rep. Tammy Baldwin might re-introduce her well-thought out bill on LGBT health? Let’s hope that comes through, maybe it can ride some of this momentum and pass. And last, and certainly not least, tomorrow at 1:30 HHS officials are inviting insiders and out to a call ostensibly for LGBT health week, but rumor is it’ll be more than good tidings. *rubs hands* I can’t wait. Oh, and as the cherry on our 48 hour LGBT health sundae, here’s Secty. Sebelius’ memo on the IOM release.  Yes, let the press roll on. Let the bloggers get on the train, retweet it yourself, post it on Facebook, let LGBT health have it’s day in the sun. It is about time.