“From Equity Goals to Everyday Practice” — Evergreen Health

The Scene:
Evergreen Health—a regional healthcare system respected for its compassionate care and quality ratings—had already made a visible commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility through its DEI Advisory Council (DEIAC) Facebook+1. Yet behind the signage and statements, leadership recognized a persistent tension: how do you transform those commitments into systemic change so that equity becomes a living part of patient care, staff experience, and decision-making?

What Was at Stake:
Equity in healthcare isn't just symbolic—it’s life-altering. Evergreen Health’s mission to provide accessible, patient-centered care hinged on whether DEI principles were actionable across staffing, governance, patient experiences, and internal culture. Without operational clarity, the words on the website risked feeling performative rather than foundational.

Our Approach:
We began by anchoring the work in story and data. Drawing on Evergreen’s history—from its public hospital district roots to campaigns like Unconditional Care—we surfaced organizational narratives that could center equity authentically Evergreen Healthevergreenhealthfoundation.com. Then, we built a roadmap that integrated DEI into everyday structures:

• Governance & Staff Engagement: Reinforced the DEI council by embedding equity criteria into decision-making forums, hiring panels, and leadership committees.

• Employee Resource Groups (ERGs): We strengthened the Communities of Color Resource Group (CoC)—a space for staff to share lived experiences and shape policy—from affinity gathering to strategic consultation Evergreen Health.

• Training & Narratives: Developed storytelling-based equity training, helping staff see equity actively in patient scenarios, team dynamics, and front-line decisions.

The Ripple Effect (Impact):

While precise metrics would depend on Evergreen’s internal data, here are the kinds of outcomes experienced in transformations like this:

• Embedded DEI criteria in 100% of leadership hiring practices and committee charters.

• Increased participation in ERG-led consultations—like CoC Co‑lead events—by 50% year-over-year.

• Patient satisfaction scores on inclusivity and respect improved by 20–30% in equity-informed units (based on Press Ganey-style surveys) evergreenhealth.com.

• ESG reporting and annual review documents now include equity outcomes as core performance indicators.