The toolkit offers five actionable steps for health systems to take.
The American Medical Association has released a toolkit of five steps to help health systems improve equity in the care they provide.
The toolkit, Racial and Health Equity: Concrete STEPS for Health Systems, was developed to guide health systems in improving racial and health equity. According to a release from the organization, the steps are part of a larger effort to encourage continuous learning, improvement, and accountability.
"The AMA is committed to embedding racial justice, advancing health equity and partnering with others to identify, prevent and eliminate racism in our health system," Gerald Harmon, MD, president of AMA said in the release. "The AMA's newest toolkit will help guide health systems in efforts that promote positive cultural transformation and address the root cause of racial health inequities."
The AMA's Racial and Health Equity: Concrete STEPS for Health Systems toolkit is available on the organization's Ed Hub online learning platform, along more than 70 others, and include five action items that healthcare organizations can take today.
Committing to the work
Meaningful action is required to advance racial and health equity. There is a two-phase plan included in the toolkit to help health systems commit to organizational transformation.
Starting to shift organizational norms through learning
The toolkit provides additional tips for individual and group learning centered on the gaps in what is known about health and racial equity, racism, and anti-racism.
Improving system-wide data
A data framework provided in the toolkit can be used to improve the quality of system-wide data, which can be useful in furthering racial and health equity efforts.
Developing shared, clear, compelling visions and goals
The toolkit will demonstrate how to define a project charter with SMART goals: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound.
Launching targeted improvement efforts across the system
Using the initiative examples provided in toolkit, health systems should be able to develop improvement campaigns that will specifically work to advance racial justice and health equity.
Jasmyne Ray is the revenue cycle editor at HealthLeaders.