Healthcare facilities have made great strides in providing equal care to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender patients, visitors and employees, but there is still room for improvement, according to the Healthcare Equality Index 2013 report.
The report includes findings from an online survey administered annually by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation Health & Aging Program to healthcare facilities about their treatment of members of the LGBT community. This year, 718 healthcare facilities participated in the report — a 153 percent increase from 2012. And, for the first time, all 50 states were represented. However, five states had only one facility participate, indicating a potential for significant growth in facility participation.
This year also saw a nearly 200 percent increase in the number of facilities designated a "Leader in LGBT Healthcare Equality," with 464 facilities meeting the four criteria:
• An LGBT-inclusive patient non-discrimination policy
• An LGBT-inclusive equal visitation policy
• An LGBT-inclusive employment non-discrimination policy
• Staff training in LGBT patient-centered care
However, there is room for improvement in recognizing gender identity-related discrimination in addition to sexual orientation-related discrimination, according to the report. While 93 percent of respondents included "sexual orientation" in their patient non-discrimination policies, only 87 percent include "gender identity." Similarly, 96 percent of respondents include "sexual orientation" in their employment non-discrimination policies, while only 85 percent include "gender identity."
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