PHILADELPHIA –– The Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Hospital, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, and Chester County Hospital were announced among the 2016 class of the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s “Leader in LGBT Healthcare Equality Index 2016” list. The HRC Foundation is the educational arm of the country’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) civil rights organization.
The Healthcare Equality Leaders were selected based on an annual survey identifying healthcare institutions that lead in efforts to offer equal care for LGBT patients by evaluating inclusive policies and practices related to LGBT patients, visitors and employees.
Penn Medicine hospitals earned top marks in meeting non-discrimination and training criteria that demonstrate commitment to equitable, inclusive care for LGBT patients and their families. The four hospitals standardized their patient and employee non-discrimination policies to include sexual orientation and gender identity or expression and provided LGBT patient care training for over 150 hospital staff in organization leadership, nursing management, patient relations, admitting, and human resources management.
“This annual recognition reaffirms our commitment to advancing LGBT health in patient care, research, and education at Penn Medicine,” says Patrick J. Brennan, MD, chief medical officer. “As an institution, it is critical that we foster an inclusive environment for all patients and deliver the best care backed by collaborative research across disciplines addressing the disparities and needs of those we serve every day. We are proud to be a leader in LGBT health.”
The Penn Medicine hospitals were among a select group of healthcare facilities nationwide with this distinction. These facilities meet key criteria, including patient and employee non-discrimination policies that specifically mention sexual orientation and gender identity, a guarantee of equal visitation for same-sex partners and parents, and LGBT health education for key staff members.
Since the program's inception in 2013, the Penn Medicine Program for LGBT Health has provided health education and training initiatives, and facilitated efforts publishing research and delivering presentations on various LGBT health topics. Penn Medicine is the first academic medical center in the Northeast — one among just a handful of academic medical centers in the U.S. — to launch a program across multiple professional schools and affiliated hospitals to improve the health of LGBT individuals. Health disparities and inequalities within this community have become increasingly recognized, but are rarely addressed in today’s health care settings.
With more than 1.5 million members and supporters, the HRC is the largest civil rights organization seeking equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.
The Healthcare Equality Index offers healthcare facilities resources to help provide equal care to LGBT patients, as well as assistance in complying with new regulatory requirements and access to high-quality staff training.
For more information about the Healthcare Equality Index 2016, or to download a free copy of the report, visit http://www.hrc.org/hei/leaders-in-lgbt-healthcare-equality.
Penn Medicine is one of the world’s leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, excellence in patient care, and community service. The organization consists of the University of Pennsylvania Health System and Penn’s Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine, founded in 1765 as the nation’s first medical school.
The Perelman School of Medicine is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $550 million awarded in the 2022 fiscal year. Home to a proud history of “firsts” in medicine, Penn Medicine teams have pioneered discoveries and innovations that have shaped modern medicine, including recent breakthroughs such as CAR T cell therapy for cancer and the mRNA technology used in COVID-19 vaccines.
The University of Pennsylvania Health System’s patient care facilities stretch from the Susquehanna River in Pennsylvania to the New Jersey shore. These include the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center, Chester County Hospital, Lancaster General Health, Penn Medicine Princeton Health, and Pennsylvania Hospital—the nation’s first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.
Penn Medicine is an $11.1 billion enterprise powered by more than 49,000 talented faculty and staff.