Newswise — NEW ORLEANS, La – Newsweek and Plant-A Insights Group, a market data research firm, named Ochsner Health one of America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity in 2024. This is the second consecutive year Ochsner Health has received this recognition.
“At Ochsner Health, we live our values of putting patients first by acting with integrity, compassion, inclusivity, and teamwork, thereby creating a more equitable place to work and receive care. Our goal is not only excellence through high-quality care but also continuing a culture of belonging for our patients and our employees,” said Deborah Grimes, senior vice president and chief diversity officer at Ochsner Health. “It is an honor to be included again as one of America’s Greatest Workplace for Diversity by Newsweek.”
The Newsweek survey of over 220,000+ individuals included representation at more than 1.5 million companies in America. Ochsner earned 5 out of 5 stars on the large company category score list.
Newsweek utilized a scoring process to determine the most diverse companies. It involved a thorough examination of publicly available data, interviews with HR professionals and an anonymous online survey conducted among a diverse group of employees at companies in the U.S. Respondents shared insights into corporate culture, working environments and other aspects of their own companies and other familiar companies. Winning companies represent 78 industries, including large companies with more than 5,000 employees and mid-size companies with more than 1,000 employees but fewer than 5,000.
“Diversity, equity and inclusion are a part of who we are at Ochsner Health. Celebrating what makes every culture and person unique is important to creating an inclusive place to work and receive care," Tracey Schiro, executive vice president, chief people and culture officer, Ochsner Health. "We continue to work together to enhance our established programs, best practices, and resources for diversity, equity, and inclusion, making Ochsner a great place to work for all.”
Some of the diversity initiatives underway at Ochsner:
- A Chief Diversity Officer whose role focuses on developing policies and practices that promote focused attention to diversity and inclusion matters, including recruitment, retention, workforce planning and career development.
- A team of diversity & inclusion leaders who work collaboratively with local and system-level Ochsner leaders to foster a supportive environment, connecting and aligning those teams with Ochsner’s system-wide efforts.
- Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) councils representing employees in every region and in key roles.
- Resource groups representing key interests across the organization. Ochsner Resource Groups are voluntary, employee-led groups that focus on the patient experience, community outreach, mentoring, recruitment and education. Each group is open to all Ochsner employees, no matter their identity.
- Ochsner strives to have a diverse leadership team and create an inclusive environment for employees, families and patients, partner with the community and include Ochsner’s supply chain partners in its diversity and inclusion work.
- Ochsner offers workforce training programs to help unemployed and underemployed find meaningful careers in healthcare.
- Ochsner hosts an annual HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) Healthcare Careers Summit for aspiring healthcare professionals in a different region of Louisiana each year.
- Ochsner works within and across communities to emphasize the need to reduce disparate health outcomes and improve healthcare equity for all Ochsner patients.
- Ochsner provides diverse team members with one-on-one mentoring with senior leaders at Ochsner through the Momentum program.
- Ochsner launched an update to Workday that allows employees to self-identify in new areas, including ethnicity, race, veteran status, gender identity, sexual orientation, and disability status.
- In Epic, Ochsner clinicians are able to better track patients' sex, gender identity, chosen name and pronouns. Personalized care allows for better support, resulting in better outcomes.
“Diversity is a widely discussed topic – and it remains a crucial factor as people look for an employer or a business partner. Newsweek and market-data research firm Plant-A Insights are proud to introduce “America’s Greatest Workplaces for Diversity 2024,” highlighting companies that are committed to offering diverse and inclusive work environment,” said Nancy Cooper, global editor in chief, Newsweek.
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About Ochsner Health
Ochsner Health is an integrated healthcare system with a mission to Serve, Heal, Lead, Educate and Innovate. Celebrating more than 80 years of service, it leads nationally in cancer care, cardiology, neurosciences, liver and kidney transplants and pediatrics, among other areas. Ochsner is consistently named both the top hospital and top children’s hospital in Louisiana by U.S. News & World Report. The not-for-profit organization is inspiring healthier lives and stronger communities through its Healthy State initiative, a bold and collaborative plan to realize a healthier Louisiana. Its focus is on preventing diseases and providing patient-centered care that is accessible, affordable, convenient and effective. Ochsner Health pioneers new treatments, deploys emerging technologies and performs groundbreaking research, including 4,000 patients enrolled in 685 clinical studies in 2022. It has more than 38,000 employees and over 4,700 employed and affiliated physicians in over 90 medical specialties and subspecialties. It operates 46 hospitals and more than 370 health and urgent care centers across Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and the Gulf South; and its cutting-edge Connected Health digital medicine program is caring for patients beyond its walls. In 2022, Ochsner Health treated more than 1.4 million people from every state and 62 countries. As Louisiana’s top healthcare educator of physicians, Ochsner Health and its partners educate thousands of healthcare professionals annually. To learn more, visit https://www.ochsner.org/.
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