UNC Hospitals in Chapel Hill has been designated a Leader in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality for the 2018 Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) survey. The HEI scores health care facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of their LGBTQ patients, visitors and employees.
The purpose of the HEI is to help LGBTQ patients and their loved ones find LGBTQ-friendly health care facilities that provide equitable and inclusive care.
In its 11th year, the Healthcare Equality Index is the national LGBTQ benchmarking tool, evaluating more than 1,600 healthcare facilities nationwide. It is administered by the Human Rights Campaign (HRC), the largest national LGBTQ civil rights organization with more than 3 million supporters.
This is the second year that participants have been given a numerical score based on their LGBTQ-inclusive policies and practices. UNC Hospitals scored 100 out of 100 possible points in this year’s HEI survey.
“This is a tremendous accomplishment. We have more work to do however, this is a testament of our commitment to provide a diverse and inclusive work environment for staff and culturally appropriate care for our patients. Moving forward, I want to help the rest of the hospitals in our system obtain Leader designation,” said Aleyah Pryor-Pankey, System Executive Director of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion.
Ratings for each participating facility are published in the annual HEI report and are available on the HRC website, allowing consumers to easily search the HEI database or an interactive map to see how facilities near them have been rated each year.