"[I]t is necessary to be proactive and innovative in order to achieve strategic diversity, equity, and inclusion goals from a governance perspective," says WittKieffer CEO, Andrew Chastain.
The COVID-19 pandemic reinvigorated healthcare organizations' focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and health equity initiatives.
According to a new report published this week by the Health Management Academy and WittKieffer, while national health system boards have also turned their focus towards DEI and health equity, they're not necessarily equipped to implement their strategies.
In fact, the report, which surveyed CEOs, hospital presidents, and board members from 25 leading health systems across the country, found 78% of health systems surveyed have a systemwide health equity strategy, while only 3% reported having health equity expertise on their board.
Additionally, the study found that racial and ethnic diversity on boards "remains stagnant for most minority groups," with diversity in age and gender also trailing behind stated goals.
- In 2021, board members remained predominantly white (78%); with a notably smaller amount of people identifying as Black (17%), Hispanic and Latino (3%), and Asian (1%)
- In 2021, board chair demographics were also predominately white, (67% male, 6% female)
- 17% Black board chairs identified as male, while 6% identified as female
- 6% Hispanic and Latino board chairs identified as male
- In 2021, the majority of board members were 60–75 years old (60%). 28% were 50–59 years old and 40–49 years and 75+ years old were both 6%. Only 1% of board members were 31–39 years old. No one was under the age of 30.
To change this, health system boards must make changes to board member makeup, goals, and recruitment. Among the health system's strategies includes "the push to modernize governance and better align with health system strategy is reflected in LHS’ top 2021 board priorities," the report says.
Top governance priorities include:
- Reviving strategic initiatives following COVID-19
- Recruiting board members with DEI expertise to help boards navigate the future of healthcare
- Electing board members that represent the communities being served (including race, age, gender)
- Activating system-wide health equity goals
- Modernizing board structures to support board evolution
According to the report, boards should also update their strategies to include:
- Setting goals around diversity
- Expanding the recruitment process, including a focus on inclusion during onboarding
- Updating governance policies and procedures
- Updated board communication and education
- Reviewing and updated performance evaluations
"Health disparities and inequities that have existed for years, and have been further amplified by the COVID-19 pandemic, have put additional pressures on healthcare boards to improve their governance practices," Andrew Chastain, president and CEO of WittKieffer, said in a statement. "This report should be a reminder for most, and a wake-up call for some, that it is necessary to be proactive and innovative in order to achieve strategic diversity, equity, and inclusion goals from a governance perspective. This includes finding the right board members who can make change happen in a health system."
Participating leading health systems, who were surveyed "on a range of governance and executive leadership trends" for the report include:
- AdventHealth
- Advocate Aurora Health
- Banner Health
- BayCare
- Carilion Clinic
- Christiana Care
- Cone Health
- Health Fairview
- Henry Ford Health System
- Integris
- Lehigh Valley Health Network
- McLaren Health Care
- Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare
- Northwell Health
- Ohio Health
- Norton Healthcare
- Novant Health
- Providence
- Presbyterian
- Ochsner Health
- SSM Health
- SCL Health
- Spectrum Health
- Virtua Health
- Yale New Haven Health
Melanie Blackman is a contributing editor for strategy, marketing, and human resources at HealthLeaders, an HCPro brand.