Comparative Healthcare Workforce Diversity Free Essay Example, 2750 words

The purpose of this paper is to examine the healthcare workforce diversity in American hospitals and then establish the patterns and problems within this area. From a human resources perspective, it will then examine different ways of managing this diversity to try and establish a positive workforce diversity program which aims to provide good, consistent service to the population. The different layers of the healthcare workforce will be examined to try and provide a full picture of the workforce in the United States. Also, the examination will illustrate that how this is affecting the healthcare system within this country, and try to come to some resolution with regards to improving, managing and maintaining the system. To examine the management of healthcare diversity in American hospitals, it is worth looking at current issues within the workforce diversity of American hospitals within current academic researches. It has been noted that providing diversity in healthcare is vitall y important for 'culturally competent healthcare' and it is instrumental in providing a good and worthwhile service to the population. The real question is, however, how much diversity is there currently in healthcare in the United States? We will write a custom essay sample on Comparative Healthcare Workforce Diversity or any topic specifically for you Only $17.96 $11.86/pageorder now It has been shown that there are serious sociocultural boundaries between different groups when it comes to careers in healthcare, with only 2% of healthcare workers identifying as Hispanic or Latino, despite the fact that 12.5% of the general population identifies as this race. This is not the only example of a mismatch in diversity within the workforce. Gamble has shown that African Americans are also severely underrepresented in healthcare within the United States. With such an emphasis being placed on providing good healthcare that is both culturally relevant and culturally sensitive, it is obvious that these disparities are a significant problem in American healthcare. Interestingly, it has also been found that areas with high diversity with respect to African Americans and Latino residents are just as likely as predominantly white areas to have a shortage of physicians.