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ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON TRAINING IN PRIMARY CARE MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY Training Culturally Competent Primary Care Professionals to provide High Quality Healthcare for All Americans: The Essential Role of Title VII, Section 747, in the Elimination of Healthcare Disparities Third Annual Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and to Congress November 2003 The views expressed in this document are solely those of the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry and do not necessarily represent the views of the Health Resources and Services Administration nor the United States Government. Table of Contents (for on-line viewing only) Printer-friendly Adobe .pdf Advisory
Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Advisory
Committee Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health
and Human Services and to Congress Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Section 748 [2931] of the Health Professions Part- nerships Act of 1998 authorizes the establish-ment of an Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry. The Act directs the Secretary to establish an advisory committee to be known as the Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry. The Advisory Committee was constituted to:
Congress created the Advisory Committee to obtain insight and objectives from primary health care providers, educators and trainees who work on the front line. The members below include health professionals from the disciplines of primary care medicine and dentistry including physicians, physician assistants, as well as general and pediatric dentists. Advisory Committee Members Billie
Wright Adams, M.D., F.A.A.P. Ruth
M. Ballweg, M.P.A., P.A.-C. Frank
A. Catalanotto, D.M.D. James
J. Crall, D.D.S., Sc.D. Thomas
G. DeWitt, M.D. Michael
W. Donohoo, DDS Julia
Flanagan, M.P.H., P.A.-C. Ronald
D. Franks, M.D. John
J. Frey III, M.D. Michelle
Hauser, P.A.-C. Christopher
M. Howard, M.D. Ross
N. Hugues, DDS Matilde
M. Irigoyen, M.D. Ronald
S. Mito, D.D.S., FDS RCS (Ed) Carlos
A. Moreno, M.D., M.S.P.H. Rubens J.
Pamies, M.D. Maxine
A. Papadakis, M.D. Denise
V. Rodgers, M.D., Chair Joseph
E. Scherger, M.D., M.P.H. Terrence
E. Steyer, M.D. Valerie
E. Stone, M.D., M.P.H. Gregory
Strayhorn, M.D., Ph.D. Craig
D. Whiting, D.O., F.A.C.F.P. Report Writing Group Thomas
G. DeWitt, M.D. (Co-chair) Improving the health of our Nation’s populace in-creasingly depends on the elimination of health dis- parities in care. This third report outlines the role that Title VII, section 747 should play in meeting that goal. The first two reports of the DHHS Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry addressed the accomplishments of Title VII, section 747 programs in effectively training our primary care workforce to meet the needs of the Nation and their critical role in strengthening the link between emerging public health concerns and primary care. This third report details a specific set of recommendations that address the critical area of helping to eliminate health care disparities in racial and ethnic minorities and increasing the quality of care for all Americans. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, minorities will grow to 46 percent of the total population by 2050. Reports from the Institute of Medicine and others demonstrate that racial and ethnic minorities receive lower quality of health care services and are less likely to receive routine medical procedures. These disparities have been documented to increase mortality, morbidity and health care costs and decrease quality of life and productivity. Primary care providers reach two-thirds of the U.S. population; therefore, training primary care physicians, dentists and physician assistants to provide culturally effective health care is a significant strategy to help eliminate health care disparities and improve the overall quality of care for racial and ethnic minorities. Title VII, section 747 funded activities are uniquely positioned to help reach our national goal of eliminating health care disparities by preparing primary care health providers to deliver culturally effective care through innovations in education and training programs. This report details a set of recommendations that address the critical area of helping to eliminate health care disparities in racial and ethnic minorities and increasing the quality of care for all Americans. Conclusion The Advisory Committee’s deliberations and review of available data have led to the central conclusion that Title VII, section 747 has had a clear record of success with respect to its multiple objectives over the past 25 years. The Advisory Committee recommends that Title VII, section 747 be used as a significant strategy to increase the cultural competency of the health care workforce and help eliminate health care disparities. Recommendations
In support of these recommendations, the Advisory Committee proposes a budget of $198 million for Title VII, section 747 discipline-specific and interdisciplinary projects. Appendix The attached appendix illustrates the disparities in care for racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Specifically the appendix documents the disparities in care for Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics by State for the leading health indicators of (1) infant mortality (2) diabetes prevalence, (3) dental visits, and (4) age-adjusted death rates. “There is a continuing disparity in the burden of death and illness experienced by Black and other minority Americans as compared to our Nation as a whole. That disparity has existed ever since Federal record keeping began more than a generation ago and although our health charts do itemize steady gains in the health of minority Americans, the stubborn disparity remains . . . an affront to both our ideals and to the ongoing genius of American medicine” (Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health, 1986). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, minorities will comprise 46 percent of the total population by the year 2050. Reports from the Institute of Medicine and others demonstrate that racial and ethnic minorities receive lower quality of health care services and are less likely to receive routine medical procedures, even when variations in factors such as insurance status, income, age, education, environment, employment, and co-morbid conditions are taken into account. The impact of these disparities has been shown in increased mortality and morbidity, decreased quality of life and productivity, and overall increased health care costs. The elimination of health disparities has been a focus of current and past administrations over the past two decades. Now, as addressed in Healthy People 2010, the elimination of health disparities has become a cornerstone of our national health policy. The sources of health and health care disparities are varied and complex. However, recent evidence points to stereotyping, biases, and greater clinical uncertainty on the part of health care providers as key contributors to inequity in treatment. In addition, the severe time pressures and cost-containment conditions under which health professionals operate may hamper their ability to accurately assess presenting symptoms of minority patients, particularly where cultural or linguistic barriers are present. Thus, the provision of culturally effective health care has emerged as a significant strategy in eliminating health care disparities and improving overall quality of care. Title VII, section 747 funded programs are uniquely positioned to help reach our national goal of eliminating health care disparities by preparing primary care providers to be competent in delivering culturally effective care through innovations in education and training programs. Unlike other specialty areas of medicine, primary care providers have a unique ability to impact both health before illness onset (through counseling and prevention) and health care treatment/maintenance after disease onset. Effective primary care delivery is of particular importance in eliminating health disparities because it is considered to be an affordable and cost-effective approach to generating and maintaining positive health outcomes. Primary care providers touch the lives of more Americans than any other group of clinicians. Two-thirds of all Americans interact with a primary care provider every year. Improving the health of our Nation’s populace increasingly depends on the elimination of health disparities in care. This third report outlines the role that Title VII, section 747 should play in meeting that goal. The first two reports of the DHHS Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry addressed the accomplishments of Title VII, section 747 programs in effectively training our primary care workforce to meet the needs of the entire Nation and their critical role in strengthening the link between emerging public health concerns and primary care. This third report details a specific set of recommendations that address the utilization of Title VII, section 747 programs to increase cultural competency of our nations primary care providers to help eliminate health care disparities in racial and ethnic minorities and increase the quality of care for all Americans. Summary of Accomplishments of Title VII, Section 747 Programs Title VII, section 747 of the Public Health Service Act has transformed the landscape of primary care training and practice in the United States. From its beginnings, Title VII, section 747 has helped to develop and expand training programs for primary care providers, to promote diversity in the workforce, to ensure that health professions curricula respond to the changing demands and emerging needs of the U.S. population, and to improve the Nation’s health by assuring equitable access to a high-quality, health care workforce. For example, Title VII, section 747 funding has produced the following outcomes:
HEALTH DISPARITIES, CULTURAL COMPETENCY AND QUALITY OF CARE Health Disparities and Quality of Care Healthcare Disparities are racial or ethnic differences in the quality of health care that are not due to access-related factors or clinical needs, preferences and appropriateness of intervention (Smedley, Stith, et al. 2002). Despite concerted efforts, studies have established that racial and ethnic minorities receive a lower quality of health care services and are less likely to receive routine medical procedures. Evidence of racial and ethnic disparities in health care has shown to be consistent across a range of illnesses and health care services. For example, data from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (Gornick, 2000), 2000 Community Tracking Survey (Hargraves, 2002) and the 1998 National Health Interview Survey (Series 10, 2002) show that:
“The burden of harm conveyed by the collective impact of all our health care quality problems is staggering” (Chassin, Gavin, et al., 1998). Cultural Competency and Effectiveness The provision of culturally effective care is critical to the delivery of quality health care for all Americans. Being culturally competent to deliver that care is seen as a way to respond to diverse patient populations, reduce health care disparities, and improve the quality of care for all patients. Experts draw clear links between cultural competence, quality improvement, and the elimination of racial or ethnic disparities in care (Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). The field of “cultural competence” in health care has emerged to address the factors that may contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in care. Studies indicate that providers assess patients of different racial/ethnic backgrounds differently, when all factors but race/ethnicity are comparable (Ferguson, Weinberger, et al. 1998; Fiscella, Franks, et al. 2000). Further, evidence suggests that stereotyping, biases, and uncertainty on the part of health care providers significantly contributes to unequal treatment. Cultural Competence in health care describes the ability of systems to provide care to the patients with diverse values, beliefs and behaviors, including tailored delivery to meet patient’s social, cultural and linguistic needs (Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). As detailed in the IOM report entitled Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health (Smedley, Stith, et al., 2002), providers’ conscious and subconscious beliefs and perceptions about their patients can impact the type and effectiveness of the treatment delivered. Specifically, there is a negative association between racial/ethnic minority status and both the quality of health care received and positive health outcomes, even after accounting for treatment site, insurance status and other patient characteristics. Given the rapidly changing U.S. demography, the majority of future health care professionals will be called upon to care for a significant percentage of patients with backgrounds different than their own. To do so effectively, health care providers must have a firm understanding of how and why different belief systems, cultural biases, ethnic origins, family structures and other culturally determined factors influence the manner in which people experience illness, adhere to medical advice, and respond to treatment. Studies have established that such differences are real and translate into real differences in the outcomes of care. “Our health care system is complicated for all . . . you can just imagine trying to navigate it if you have limited-English proficiency or a different understanding of health and health care” (Practicing physician quoted in Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). The ultimate goal is a health care system and workforce that can deliver the highest quality of care to every patient regardless of race, ethnicity or cultural background. Cultural Competency Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Few training programs currently provide any formal education about culture and its relationship to health. Recent efforts have been ongoing to attempt to develop curriculum guidelines and standards, but, currently, none are widely used in medical education. Health care providers are entering the workforce with little or no training in psycho-social issues. Training programs must be encouraged to incorporate multi-cultural education into their curricula to equip health care providers with the tools and skills needed to be competent to provide appropriate culturally effective care. This includes incorporating educational modules that emphasize cross-cultural training, effective communication, and an awareness of the impact of social and cultural factors on health beliefs and behaviors. Title VII, section 747 has the ability to make cultural competency an integral part of providers’ training by rapidly inducing across-the-board structural changes in the curricula of medical and dental schools. Title VII, section 747 programs use incentives to introduce and encourage guidelines for model curricula to medical and dental schools throughout the Nation, impacting changes in undergraduate and graduate curricula as well as faculty development. Challenges to the Delivery of Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Health care providers need to be aware of the impact of social and cultural factors on health beliefs and behaviors and to be equipped with the tools and skills to manage these factors appropriately through training and education. There currently exists a substantial gap in consistent and comprehensive education in medical school, training during residency, and continuing education on the scope of health care disparities and how to competently provide culturally effective care. Challenges that affect quality and contribute to disparities in care include:
“If we don’t have at the table the diverse populations we serve, you can be sure that policymaking and program design are going to be exclusionary as well . . . and we’re going to continue to have disparities if we don’t start increasing diversity in the health professions” (CEO of a Public Hospital quoted in Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). The Advisory Committee’s deliberations and review of available data have led to the central conclusion that Title VII, section 747 has had a clear record of success with respect to its multiple objectives over the past 25 years. The Advisory Committee recommends that Title VII, section 747 be used as a significant strategy to increase the cultural competency of the health care workforce to help eliminate health care disparities. Title VII, section 747 is the major vehicle for influencing the content and capacity of primary care education and training in the United States. As such, it is the ideal mechanism for increasing the awareness and understanding of health care disparities among providers and the impact of race, ethnicity and culture on clinical decision making, as well as developing the educational infrastructure to address these needs. Primary care providers are instrumental in efforts to eliminate health disparities and improve the public health. Unlike other specialty areas of medicine, primary care providers have a unique ability to impact health both before illness onset (through counseling and prevention) and after disease onset (through treatment/maintenance). Further, as the Nation’s population continues to shift in its ethnic and cultural composition, it is even more imperative that primary care practitioners be trained to deliver both technically and culturally effective health care. According to Census Bureau projections, minority groups have increased from 13 percent of the population in 1950 to 30 percent of the population in 2000 and are projected to account for 46 percent of the total population by 2050. Since Title VII, section 747 programs train primary care providers to serve in community health centers and medically underserved communities, it is even more essential that these providers be specifically trained in cultural competency. In 2001, the current administration invested over $1 billion in the development of community health centers across the country, as well as the establishment of new health care facilities in previously underserved areas. Such an expansion of service areas requires a comparable expansion in the primary care education and training system for those practitioners who will serve on these front lines. The costs of not investing in the education and training of our primary care providers will have critical ramifications on health disparities and national health care costs.
In support of these recommendations, the Advisory Committee proposes a budget of $198 million for Title VII, section 747 discipline-specific and interdisciplinary projects. This funding level, as initially addressed in the Committee’s first report, will result in a major payoff in the provision of quality, accessible, culturally effective care—a substantial and key step towards the elimination of health disparities and the provision of quality health care for all Americans. APPENDIX The attached appendix illustrates the disparities in care for racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Specifically the appendix documents the disparities in care for Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics by State for the leading health indicators of (1) infant mortality (2) diabetes prevalence, (3) dental visits, and (4) age-adjusted death rates. [CHARTS APPEARING IN EXECUTIVE SUMMARY] [Distribution Chart:] Distribution BHPr-funded Medicine and Dentistry Program Graduates Are 3 - 10 Times More Likely to Practice in Medically Underserved Communities 1997* 1998 Percent Family Medicine Residency 33 52 General Practice of Dentistry 34 56 Dental Public Health Residency -- 100 Physician Assistant Training 39 42 GIM/Ped Residency 40 52 Average U.S. Health Professions Graduates entering MUCs 10 *1997 data shown where available 1) Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) Program Performance Data: BHPr CPMS. 2) Average U.S. Health Professions Graduates Entering MUCs, Caiman N., 1991, presentation to New York Council on Graduate Medical Education. [Diversity Chart:] DIVERSITY BHPr Supported Programs Graduate 2 - 5 Times More Minority and Disadvantaged Students 1997* 1998 Percent Physician Assistant Training 32 36 GIM/Ped Residency -- 43 General Practice of Dentistry 33 50 Family Medicine Residency -- 35 GIM/Ped Faculty Development -- 23 Average U.S. Health Professions Workforce Underrepresented Minority Representation 10 * 1997 data shown where available 1) Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) Program Performance Data: BHPr CPMS. 2) Average U.S. Health Professions Workforce Underrepresented Minority Representation, compiled by HRSA, Bureau of Health Professions, National Center for Health Workforce Information and Analysis, from U.S. Bureau of the Census data. Third Annual Report to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and to Congress Training Culturally Competent Primary Care Professionals to Provide High Quality Healthcare for All Americans: The Essential Role of Title VII, Section 747, in the Elimination of Healthcare Disparitiess “There is a continuing disparity in the burden of death and illness experienced by Black and other minority Americans as compared to our Nation as a whole. That disparity has existed ever since Federal record keeping began more than a generation ago and although our health charts do itemize steady gains in the health of minority Americans, the stubborn disparity remains . . . an affront to both our ideals and to the ongoing genius of American medicine” (Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health, 1986). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, minorities will comprise 46 percent of the total population by the year 2050. Reports from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) and other distinguished organizations demonstrate that racial and ethnic minorities receive lower quality of health care and are less likely to receive routine medical procedures, even when variations in factors such as insurance status, income, age, education, environment, employment, and co-morbid conditions are taken into account. The impact of these disparities has been shown in increased mortality and morbidity, decreased quality of life and productivity, and overall increased health care costs. The elimination of health disparities has been a focus of current and past administrations over the past two decades. Now, as addressed in Healthy People 2010, the elimination of health disparities has become a cornerstone of our national health policy. A major contributor to health care disparities is the inability to access quality health care. In 2001, the current administration invested over $1 billion in the development of community health centers across the country; the establishment of new health care facilities in previously underserved areas; and the expansion of existing facilities to include new services, such as oral health, mental health, respite care and pharmacy services. In addition, the National Health Service Corps placed over 2,500 primary care clinicians in medically underserved areas. Though access to quality health care has increased through these initiatives, millions of families still face barriers to obtaining quality health care because of existing cultural and linguistic barriers, poor cross-cultural communication between patients and providers of different racial, ethnic or cultural backgrounds, and systems of care that are poorly designed to meet the needs of diverse patient populations. In addition, recent evidence points to stereotyping, discrimination and greater clinical uncertainty on the part of health care providers as key contributors to inequity in treatment. The severe time pressures and cost-containment conditions under which health professionals now operate hamper their ability to accurately assess presenting symptoms of minority patients, particularly where cultural or linguistic barriers are present. Research points to limited provider awareness of how to deliver culturally effective care as well as a lack of relevant education across all levels of training as critical elements in disparities of care. Thus, the provision of culturally effective health care has emerged as a significant strategy in eliminating health care disparities and improving overall quality of care. Title VII, section 747 funded programs are uniquely positioned to help reach the national goal of eliminating health care disparities by preparing primary care providers to deliver culturally effective care through innovations in education and training programs. Primary care providers have a unique ability to impact health both before illness onset (through counseling and prevention) and after disease onset (through treatment/maintenance). The ability of these providers to reach populations before illness onset and influence individual behaviors that impact health outcomes is critical to addressing disparities in care, resulting in an affordable and cost-effective approach to generating and maintaining positive health outcomes. Improving the health of our Nation’s populace increasingly depends on the elimination of health disparities in care. This third report outlines the role that Title VII, section 747 should play in meeting that goal. The first two reports of the Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry (ACTPCMD) addressed the accomplishments of Title VII, section 747 programs in training the primary care workforce to meet the health care needs of the Nation and their critical role in strengthening the link between emerging public health concerns and primary care. As stated in the ACTPCMD second report, achieving the public health goals of Healthy People 2010 will require greater public health collaborations which can be “better and more rapidly achieved through the public health training supported by Title VII, section 747 programs.” This third report first summarizes the accomplishments of Title VII, section 747 and demonstrates that this program is uniquely positioned to achieve the national goal of eliminating health care disparities through innovations in education and training programs. Second, the report summarizes the scope and breadth of health disparities in relationship to quality of care. Third, the report introduces the concept of culturally effective care, as it relates to reducing health disparities and improving the quality of care. Fourth, the report describes the primary and dental care delivery disciplines funded through Title VII, section 747 programs. Finally, the report concludes with a specific set of recommendations that address the quality of care for all Americans. ROLE OF TITLE VII, SECTION 747 IN REDUCING HEALTH DISPARITIES AND INCREASING QUALITY OF HEALTH CARE Title VII, section 747 is the major vehicle for influencing the content and capacity of primary care education and training in the United States. As such, it is the ideal mechanism for developing an educational infrastructure that impacts health disparities and improves the quality of health care for all Americans. Given the broad population reach and first contact aspect of primary and dental health care providers, Title VII funded activities can directly impact the overall quality of health care through impacting changes in undergraduate and graduate curricula as well as faculty development. No other Federal vehicle exists to create such structural changes in the Nation’s health care workforce. Title VII, section 747 programs are essential in educating future practitioners to care for underserved populations and encouraging them to work in underserved communities. This helps to increase access to quality health care for those often left behind by the largely private systems of care in this country. Students funded through Title VII, section 747 programs provide basic health care services to underserved populations as part of their training. These programs employ strategies such as providing didactic training for students for practice in underserved areas, interactions with faculty role models who serve in underserved areas, and placement services to foster and encourage students to enter practice in these areas. Health care practitioners who spend part of their training providing for health care for the underserved have a higher likelihood of locating in underserved areas after graduation or program completion (DHHS, Program Accomplishment Statements, 1998). The populations served by Title VII, section 747 graduates are those most vulnerable in receiving quality care due to their lack of resources, poor access, and communication and cultural barriers. Currently over 40 million persons reside in medically or dentally designated underserved areas, many of these are populated predominantly by minorities (HRSA, Bureau of Health Professions, National Center for Health Workforce Information and Analysis, 2001). In addition, Title VII, section 747 programs are dedicated to increasing the number of minority health care professionals, enrollees and faculty. Focusing on encouraging and preparing minority and disadvantaged students for success at the undergraduate level eventually provides a nationally representative pool of diverse students. The solution to achieving diversity in the health professions depends on the ability to recruit these persons into the educational pipeline of the health professions. This strategy determines not only their ultimate representation in the workforce but, ultimately their influence on the educational process overall. The program’s support for increasing diversity serves five major purposes. The first purpose is to move minorities into the health profession in concert with their representation in the population. According to the 2000 census, underrepresented minorities comprise 25 percent of the Nation’s population, but only 10 percent of all health professionals. In 1999, African Americans and Hispanics each constituted approximately 12 percent of the U.S. population but made up only 2.6 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, of the physician workforce. Native Americans are even less well represented in medicine; they constitute just 0.7 percent of the population but merely 0.1 percent of America’s doctors. In addition, the annual medical school enrollment of individuals from minority groups underrepresented in medicine, which was steadily growing until 1996, has since been on a steady decline, dropping from 2,340 for the 1995-96 school year to 1,922 for the 2000-01 school year. Enrollment in dental schools has seen an even greater decline. After a slight increase through the mid-90s, the size of the minority applicant pool and the number of minority students and graduates has steadily declined and is currently only 10 percent of all dental students. Since minority patients appear to be more satisfied with providers who are culturally attuned to their problems (study evidence suggests that racial and ethnic concordance between physician and patient results in greater patient satisfaction), efforts to reach the goal of parity—the same proportion of minority dentists and physicians as their representation in the general population—is a key to decreasing health disparities and improving the overall health of underserved minority populations (Community Voices, March 2001). The second purpose in increasing the number of minority health professionals is that health professionals from minority backgrounds are more likely to choose to set up practices that address the needs of the underserved. Studies have established that minority health care professionals are five times more likely to practice in underserved communities and to treat larger numbers of minority patients, irrespective of income (DHHS, Comprehensive Performance Management System, 2000). Third, studies have consistently shown that in training, racial diversity and student involvement in activities related to diversity have a direct and strong effect on learning and the way students conduct themselves in later life experiences. Only by encountering and interacting with individuals from a variety of racial and ethnic backgrounds can students transcend their own built-in viewpoints. A heterogeneous campus and faculty helps students to recognize that their own opinions are influenced by their unique race, gender, origin, and socioeconomic status (Cohen, Gabriel, et al., 2002). Fourth, greater diversity also augments the minority health care practitioners and public policymakers available to assume management roles in the future health care system and to contribute to governmental efforts that address important health care issues. Providing culturally effective health care services to an ever-more diverse population is bound to pose an increasingly difficult management challenge for provider organizations, public and private program managers, and State, local and National governments. Increasing the number of minority health professionals in management and policy-making roles in the future health care system will help ensure that decisions about matters such as resource allocation and program design are tailored to meet the needs of a diverse society (Cohen, Gabriel, et al., 2002). “If we don’t have at the table the diverse populations we serve, you can be sure that policymaking and program design are going to be exclusionary as well . . . and we’re going to continue to have disparities if we don’t start increasing diversity in the health professions” (CEO of a Public Hospital quoted in Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). Lastly, the commitment of Title VII, section 747 programs to increasing the number of minority faculty will result in a broadening of the educational, training, and research agenda to encompass a greater emphasis on problems in neglected areas of societal need. Currently, there is an insufficient understanding of the problems affecting ethnic and minority populations. A great deal of additional clinical and health services research is needed to solve the problems that disproportionately affect minority populations. Results of this research can then be applied to innovative curricular development in educational training programs to improve the quality of care for all Americans. SUMMARY OF ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF TITLE VII, SECTION 747 Title VII, section 747 of the Public Health Service Act has transformed the landscape of primary care training and practice in the United States by creating a diverse, broadly competent primary care medicine and dentistry workforce. Over the past twenty five years, Title VII, section 747 has helped to develop and expand training programs for primary care providers, to promote diversity in the workforce, and to ensure that health professions curricula respond to the changing demands and emerging needs of the U.S. population. In addition, Title VII, section 747 programs are also designed to improve the Nation’s health by training a quality health care workforce, particularly for those patients who live outside the economic and medical mainstream. Title VII, section 747 programs are accomplished through the administration of competitive grants and cooperative agreements awarded to organizations that train and educate health care professionals at over 1,700 institutions. These grants are specifically focused on improving the quality, geographic distribution, and diversity of the health care workforce. Strategies used by Title VII, section 747 to solve the current mal-distribution of health care providers and to improve access to quality health care include:
Title VII, section 747 has had a dramatic impact on primary care medical and dental training programs. The number of programs in family medicine, general internal medicine, general pediatrics, physician assistant, and general and pediatric dentistry have significantly expanded due to Title VII, section 747 support. Specifically, Title VII, section 747 funding has produced the following outcomes:
Health disparities describe the disproportionate burden of disease, disability and death among a particular population or group. Studies indicate that the distribution of poor health and receipt of poor quality health care are skewed towards racial and ethnic minorities. This evidence has shown to be consistent across a wide range of illnesses and health care services. These disparities have been shown to remain even after socioeconomic differences (such as age, income, education, environment, employment) and other health care related factors (such as insurance status, co-morbid conditions and continuity of care) have been taken into account. The impact of these disparities results in increased mortality and morbidity, decreased quality of life and productivity, and overall increased health care costs. Despite the unprecedented explosion in scientific knowledge and the phenomenal capacity of medicine to diagnose, treat and cure disease, Blacks, Hispanics, native American Indians and those of Asian/Pacific Islander Heritage have not benefited fully or equitably from the fruits of science or from those systems responsible for translating and using health sciences technology (Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health, 1986). Definition of Health Disparities The IOM report, Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health (Smedley, Stith, et al., 2002) reveals a large body of published research showing that racial and ethnic minorities experience a lower quality of health services and are less likely to receive even routine medical procedures than are white Americans. The report provides a useful definition of health care disparities: Healthcare Disparities are racial or ethnic differences in the quality of health care that are not due to access-related factors or clinical needs, preferences and appropriateness of intervention (Smedley, Stith, et al., 2002). Health Disparity as a Quality Issue “The burden of harm conveyed by the collective impact of all our health care quality problems is staggering” (Chassin, Gavin, et al., 1998). There is strong recent evidence that the present U.S. health care delivery system does not provide consistent, high quality medical care to all people. Americans are frequently not able to count on receiving care that meets their needs or care that is based on the best scientific methods. Health care harms patients too frequently and routinely fails to deliver its potential benefits. A recent IOM committee assessed the capacity of today’s health care system by stating the following: “In its current form, habits, and environment, American health care is incapable of providing the public with the quality health care it expects and deserves” (Institute of Medicine, 2002). The IOM’s report, Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century (2001), makes an urgent call for fundamental change to close the quality gap. Building on the extensive evidence collected by the IOM committee and its predecessors, the report calls for six “Aims of Improvement” which the U.S. health care system (including all health care constituencies) should embrace. These aims are built around the core need for health care to be:
A health care system that achieves major gains in these six areas will be more successful in addressing and meeting patient needs. Breadth and Scope of Health and Health Care Disparities The U.S. is unique in the cultural and ethnic heterogeneity of its population, which is being further magnified by current population trends and shifting immigration patterns. According to U.S. Census Bureau projections, minority groups have increased from 13 percent of the population in 1950 to 30 percent of the population in 2000. Further, minorities are projected to account for 46 percent of the total population in 2050. More specifically, the Hispanic population is expected to double and comprise nearly one quarter of the U.S. population. The population of Asian and Pacific Islanders is expected to more than double from 4 percent in 2001 to 8.9 percent by 2050. As a result, the proportion of non-Hispanic whites will shrink from 71 percent in 2001 to approximately 53 percent in 2050. Given these trends, there is a strong expectation that health disparities will increase over time. Further, the overall percentage of immigrants within each racial/ethnic group will continue to increase. This increase is shown somewhat among non-Hispanic whites (3.4 percent to 5.2 percent, but more among non-Hispanic blacks and African Americans (5.9 percent to 11.3 percent) in 2050. Conversely, this trend will decrease among Hispanics (35.6 percent to 20 percent) and Asian and Pacific Islanders (65.5 percent to 47.5 percent) (U.S. Census Bureau, Populations Projections, 2000). Disparities in Populace Access to Quality Health Care One component of health disparities involves access to quality health care. Racial and ethnic minorities experience differences in the availability of linguistically and culturally appropriate health care providers and facilities. These differences are illustrated using measures such as usual source of care, number of preventable hospitalizations and utilization of preventive services (which are often used as proxies for an individual’s access to and use of primary care). For example, data from the Medicare Current Beneficiary Survey (Gornick, 2000), 2001 Community Tracking Study Household Survey (Hargraves, 2002), and the 1998 National Health Interview Survey (Series 10, 2002) show that:
In addition, a series of IOM reports, the Healthy People 2010 report, and other studies have provided comprehensive documentation of differences in diagnosis, referral patterns, treatment options and health outcomes for racial and ethnic minorities. For example,
Although a major contributor to health disparities is the inability to access quality health care, various other factors interact to produce health disparities. Research investigating barriers to government-sponsored programs (e.g. Medicaid, State Children’s Health Insurance Program) cite examples such as reliance on culturally inappropriate materials; fear of hidden costs; immigration concerns; stigma associated with receiving care through government programs; poor knowledge of primary care benefits; language/translation difficulties; prior negative experiences with a provider or the health care system; competing personal priorities; and indirect financial barriers such as transportation costs, daycare for other children, and job insecurity as other key contributors to health disparities. (Flores, Abreu, et al., 1999; Pulos, 1998). Disparities in the Structure of Health Systems and Processes of Care A second component of health disparities includes what happens to a patient once he/she enters the health care system, or into the so-called “processes of care.” Many sources, health systems, health care providers and utilization managers, contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in care. Focusing on the context within which patients interact with the health care system is of critical importance in addressing health care disparities and the resulting quality of care received. It is not just the difference in the health outcomes of populations, but the fraction of the difference attributable to the “operations of the health care system and the legal and regulatory climate in which health systems function” that should be considered when addressing health disparities as a quality of care issue (Smedley, Stith, et al., 2002). The most significant evidence of disparities in the processes of health care comes from the cardiovascular care literature, which suggests that disparities in medical evaluation, diagnosis, prescribed treatment and health outcomes remain, even after controlling for known confounding factors. The availability of data on cardiovascular care and the immediacy of health outcomes related to its treatment are more straightforward than in preventive oriented health care, such as primary and dental care, where outcomes may not be evident for decades and may not be as easily attributable to the care. In general, process-level factors relating to health care disparities can originate from the provider, in the form of racism, stereotyping and discrimination which impacts history taking and clinical decision-making. Studies indicate that providers assess patients of different racial/ethnic backgrounds differently, when all factors but race/ethnicity are comparable (Ferguson, Weinberger, et al., 1998; Fiscella, Franks, et al., 2000). They can also originate from the patient, in the form of care expectations, perceptions of discrimination and distrust of the provider. These perceptions may be based on individual biases and stereotypes attributed to the provider or health care setting. Recent research, however, has revealed a substantial lack of linguistically and culturally competent providers and staff in the health care workforce. Evidence exists that stereotyping, discrimination, racism, and uncertainty on the part of health care providers significantly contribute to unequal treatment. In addition, severe time pressures, a need to multi-task, and cost-containment conditions under which health professionals operate may hamper their ability to accurately assess presenting symptoms of minority patients, particularly where cultural or linguistic barriers are present. In addition, there is a geographic mal-distribution of providers that disproportionately impacts low-income, minority communities. The trend of health professionals to locate and practice in suburban and more affluent urban areas has restricted health care access of low income and particularly, low-income minority individuals. Further, the availability of health care resources, such as pharmacies, critical to illness recovery and disease management, are either unavailable or do not carry the full complement of supplies and medications as those in more affluent neighborhoods (Morrison, Wallenstein, et al., 2000). A recent expansion in community health centers and new health facilities in previously underserved areas has provided valuable service in underserved areas. However, to address disparities in care, such an expansion of service areas requires a comparable expansion in the primary care education and training system for those practitioners serving these communities. CULTURAL COMPETENCY AND EFFECTIVENESS The provision of culturally effective care is critical to the delivery of quality health care for all Americans. Experts draw clear links between cultural competence, quality improvement, and the elimination of racial or ethnic disparities in care (Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). In particular, culturally effective care is essential to the elimination of health care disparities for the large and growing minority segments of the U.S. population. A key role of Title VII, section 747 programs is to introduce, educate, and assess learners in regards to cultural competency. The effectiveness of the health care workforce is dependent on its sensitivity to the cultural differences that affect health care. Preparing a culturally competent health care workforce trained to provide culturally effective care is a national priority of Title VII, section 747 programs. Definition of Cultural Competency and Culturally Effective Care Culture has been defined as an integrated pattern of learned beliefs and behaviors that can be shared among groups. It includes thoughts, styles of communicating, ways of interacting, views on roles and relationships, values, practices, and customs. Culture is shaped by multiple influences, including race, ethnicity, nationality, language and gender, but also extends to socioeconomic status and other factors (Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). The field of “cultural competence” in health care has emerged to address the factors that contribute to racial and ethnic disparities in care. Cultural competence in health care describes the ability of systems to provide care to the patients with diverse values, beliefs and behaviors, including tailored delivery to meet patient’s social cultural and linguistic needs (Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002). Culturally effective care is a system of care that acknowledges and incorporates—at all levels—the importance of culture; and the adaptation of services to meet culturally unique needs; and an awareness of the integration and interaction of health beliefs and behaviors, disease prevalence and incidence, and treatment outcomes for different patient populations (Lavizzo-Mourey, 2003). Culturally effective care addresses the component of health care disparity that is related to the performance of the primary care provider at the point of care. This is related to a set of attitudes, knowledge, and skills that influence the continuity and quality of health care provided. In general, culturally effective activities can be categorized into three main areas (Brach and Fraser, 2000):
Cultural Competence and Health Care Disparities With the increased attention given to racial and ethnic disparities in health care, there has been greater examination of the role that patient-physician communication plays. Recent data from the Commonwealth Fund 2001 Healthcare Quality Survey (Collins, Hughes, et al., 2002) showed that:
These studies provide strong evidence of the importance of providing culturally effective care to open clear communication between patients and their physicians. The need for such communication is demonstrated by the striking proportion of minority patients who reported problems in communicating with their physician; the large number of minority patients who do not follow their doctors’ advice; and the many Hispanic and Asian American patients who, in part because of language difficulties, are not able to fully understand physicians’ written instructions and other medical information. Although being insured and having a regular doctor both lead to improved experiences, these two factors do not fully compensate for differences in personal interaction that can affect the overall quality of health care encounters (Collins, Hughes, et al., 2002). Delivering Culturally Competent Care As detailed in the IOM report, Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health (Smedley, Stith, et al., 2002) and other studies, providers’ conscious and subconscious beliefs and perceptions about their patients can influence interpretations of patient symptoms and interpersonal interactions with the patient. These, in turn, impact the type and effectiveness of the treatment delivered. Evidence suggests that provider beliefs about patients and provider behavior during the clinical encounter are independently influenced by a patient’s racial and ethnic background. Specifically, there is a negative association between racial/ethnic minority status and both the quality of health care received and positive health outcomes, even after accounting for treatment site, insurance status and other patient characteristics. Such evidence highlights the distinct role that culturally effective care can play in addressing disparities, as it can directly intervene on the provider beliefs and attitudes which impact the processes of health care delivery. The capacity of the primary care provider to deliver care that draws people into the health care system by valuing diversity and communicating effectively can be described in a spectrum such as:
These positive health outcomes lead to improved quality of care and a reduction in health disparities for ethnic and minority populations (Betancourt, presentation to ACTPCMD, 2003). “What we’re talking about in terms of cultural competency . . . is providing quality care to individuals who in the past have not received it and when I think of quality care, that’s what we’re looking for for all Americans” (Administrator, DHHS quoted in Betancourt, Green, et al. (2002). Given the rapidly changing U.S. demography, the majority of future health care professionals will be called upon to care for a significant percentage of patients with backgrounds different than their own. To do so effectively, health care providers must have a firm understanding of how and why different belief systems, cultural biases, ethnic origins, family structures and other culturally determined factors influence the manner in which people experience illness, adhere to medical advice, and respond to treatment. Studies have established that such differences are real and translate into real differences in the outcomes of care. Physicians and other health care professionals who are unmindful of the potential impact of language barriers, various religious taboos, unconventional explanatory models of disease, or traditional “alternative” remedies are not only unlikely to reach high patient satisfaction, but, even more importantly, are also unlikely to provide their patients with optimally effective care (Cohen, Gabriel, et al., 2002). As with other health professionals, primary care and oral health care providers have relied on their own personal experience and anecdotes of colleagues to understand health care delivery in a diverse population. Consistent and comprehensive education in medical school, training during residency, and continuing education on the scope of health care and health disparities and how to provide culturally effective care are needed. Cultural Competency Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Few training programs currently provide any formal education about culture and its relationship to health. Recent efforts have been ongoing to attempt to develop curriculum guidelines and standards, but, currently, none are widely used in medical education. For example, in 2001, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released national standards regarding the provision of linguistically and culturally appropriate health care services. In addition, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is currently developing a model curriculum to teach cultural competency as well as developing cultural competency “benchmarks.” Health care providers are entering the workforce with little or no training in psycho-social issues. Training programs must be encouraged to incorporate multi-cultural education into their curricula to equip health care providers with the tools and skills needed to provide appropriate culturally effective care. This includes incorporating educational modules that emphasize cross-cultural training, effective communication, and an awareness of the impact of social and cultural factors on health beliefs and behaviors. The Society of Teachers of Family Medicine’s Task force on Multicultural Health Care and Education has recently developed guidelines on training in culturally effective health care, which follow the curricular guidelines previously published by the American Academy of Family Physicians. These curricular models and guidelines are designed to introduce topics related to culture, health and illness into residency training and graduate medical education (Like, Steiner, et al., 1996). In addition, the 2003 ACTPCMD members discussed ways that this should be accomplished. Established guidelines include the following:
Title VII, section 747 has the ability to make cultural competency an integral part of providers’ training by rapidly inducing across-the-board structural changes in the curricula of medical and dental schools. Title VII, section 747 programs use incentives to introduce and encourage guidelines for model curricula to medical and dental schools throughout the Nation, impacting changes in undergraduate and graduate curricula as well as faculty development. No other Federal vehicle exists to create such structural changes. Cultural Competency as a Quality Issue Cultural competency is increasingly viewed as an ongoing process in quality improvement. An organization that is culturally competent continually identifies areas that are deficient and develops interventions to address the deficiencies. An important consideration in using standards and guidelines is that they do not merely provide a checklist of attributes or traits that define a racial/ethnic population, which can serve to perpetuate stereotypes. Instead, the incorporation of cultural competence within the larger social context of the community or neighborhood can reduce the likelihood of stereotyping, particularly since socioeconomic factors account for a large portion of observed disparities. Techniques used in the provision of culturally effective care include:
The ultimate goal is a health care system and workforce that can deliver the highest quality of care to every patient, regardless of race, ethnicity, cultural background or English proficiency. DELIVERY OF PRIMARY CARE MEDICINE AND DENTISTRY Primary care professionals provide the greatest source of care continuity and integration of health care. The aims of primary care are to provide the patient with a broad spectrum of care, both preventive and curative, over a period of time as well as to coordinate all of the care the patient receives. Primary Care is the provision of integrated, accessible healthcare services by clinicians who are accountable for addressing a large majority of personal healthcare needs, developing a sustained partnership with patients, and practicing in the context of family and community (Donaldson, Yordy, et al., 1996). Challenges to the Delivery of Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry Primary care practitioners face many challenges in providing quality care to ethnic and minority populations. These challenges include the following:
“Our healthcare system is complicated for all . . . you can just imagine trying to navigate it if you have limited-English proficiency or a different understanding of health and healthcare” (Practicing physician quoted in Betancourt, Green, et al., 2002).
Currently, the distribution of racial and ethnic minorities in schools for health occupations (e.g. dentistry, medicine, nursing) are disproportionately lower than their respective distribution within the general population. Underrepresented minorities comprise 25 percent of the Nation’s population, but only 10 percent of all health professionals. Specifically, minorities make up only 3 percent of medical school faculty, 17 percent of all city and county health officers and 2 percent of senior leaders in health care management.
Achieving cultural competence in health care would remove these barriers, supplanting the one-size-fits–all approach with a system more responsive to the needs of an increasingly diverse population. Title VII, section 747 programs support the primary care disciplines of family physicians, general internists, general pediatricians, physician assistants, and general and pediatric dentists. These primary care professionals ideally represent the “medical home” for a patient, responsible for providing and/or managing all aspects of a patients’ health care. The primary care disciplines funded through Title VII, section 747 programs are described in detail below.
The need and corresponding demand for primary care practitioners have increased enormously over the past 30 years. Unlike other fields and specialty areas of medicine, primary care providers have a unique ability to impact health both before illness onset (through counseling and prevention) and after disease onset (through treatment/maintenance). Specifically, primary care has been associated with improved overall access to the health care system, reduced emergency room and hospital outpatient services, better management of routine illness (e.g. sore throats) and chronic diseases (e.g. diabetes), lower rates of preventable hospitalizations, and lower cardiovascular disease (Blumenthal, Mort, et al., 1995). Primary care providers touch the lives of more Americans than any other group of clinicians. Two-thirds of all Americans interact with a primary care provider every year. The ability of these providers to reach populations before illness onset is critical to addressing disparities in care. Primary care and oral health care providers not only impact the quality of health care delivered, they also have influence on the individual behaviors that impact health outcomes above and beyond health care. Effective primary care delivery is of particular importance in efforts to eliminate health disparities because it is considered to be an affordable and cost-effective approach to generating and maintaining positive health outcomes (Starfield and Simpson, 1993) . The Advisory Committee’s deliberations and review of available data have led to the central conclusion that Title VII, section 747 has had a clear record of success with respect to its multiple objectives over the past 25 years. The Advisory Committee recommends that Title VII, section 747 be used as a significant strategy to increase the cultural competency of the health care workforce to help eliminate health care disparities. Title VII, section 747 is the major vehicle for influencing the content and capacity of primary care education and training in the United States. As such, it is the ideal mechanism for increasing the awareness and understanding of health care disparities among providers and the impact of race, ethnicity and culture on clinical decision making, as well as developing the educational infrastructure to address these needs. The Advisory Committee further finds that the need for an emphasis on culturally competent care is substantial and will only increase over time. According to U.S. Census Bureau projections, minority groups have increased from 13 percent of the population in 1950 to 30 percent of the population in 2000 and are projected to account for 46 percent of the total population by 2050. As such, it is imperative that primary care practitioners be trained to deliver both technically and culturally effective health care. Given the broad population reach and first contact aspect of primary and dental health care, primary care providers are instrumental in efforts to improve the public health. The Advisory Committee held extensive discussions on the role of Title VII, section 747 in educating faculty and health professional trainees in cultural competency to ensure the delivery of culturally effective care. The Advisory Committee concluded that Title VII, section 747 training programs could increase the awareness and understanding of racial and ethnic health disparities and the importance of socio-cultural factors on health beliefs and behaviors; develop human resource skills for cross-cultural assessment, communication and negotiation; increase the awareness of stereotyping and strategies to address this problem; and help develop the educational infrastructure to address these needs. Title VII, section 747 funded activities are an important tool in improving the overall quality of health care for all Americans. The Advisory Committee also believes that Title VII, section 747 must remain committed to improving the access to quality care for minority and underserved populations as well as dedicated to increasing the number of minority health care professionals, enrollees and faculty. Title VII, section 747 is essential in helping to solve the current mal-distribution of health care workers by educating and training future practitioners to care for the minority and underserved populations often left behind by the largely private systems of care in this country. Since Title VII, section 747 programs train primary care providers to serve medically underserved populations, it is even more essential that these providers be specifically trained in cultural competency. In 2001, the current administration invested over $1 billion in the development of community health centers across the country, as well as the establishment of new health care facilities in previously underserved areas. Such an expansion of services for medically underserved populations requires a comparable expansion in the primary care education and training system for those practitioners who will serve on these front lines. The costs of not investing in the education and training of our primary care providers will have critical ramifications and serve to increase health disparities and our national health care costs. Last, the Advisory Committee encourages Title VII, section 747 programs to facilitate further collaborations among public health and primary care medical providers and dentists to encourage collaborative training practices that incorporate cultural competency. This recommendation follows the findings of the Advisory Committee’s second report entitled “Delivering the Good: Improving the Public Health By Enhancing the Primary Care/Public Health Interface in the United States.”
In support of these recommendations, the Advisory Committee proposes a budget of $198 million for Title VII, section 747 discipline-specific and interdisciplinary projects. This funding level, as initially addressed in the Committee’s first report, will result in a major payoff in the provision of quality, accessible, culturally effective care—a substantial and key step towards the elimination of health disparities and the provision of quality health care for all Americans. Title VII remains a modest investment, but, as has been demonstrated, one with substantial future payoffs in terms of achieving high quality health care for all Americans and reducing the disparities that now exist in health status, health outcomes and basic access to care. APPENDIX The attached appendix illustrates the disparities in care for racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Specifically the appendix documents the disparities in care for Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics by State for the leading health indicators of (1) infant mortality (2) diabetes prevalence, (3) dental visits, and (4) age-adjusted death rates. 1) Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) Program Performance Data: BHPr CPMS. 2) Average U.S. Health Professions Graduates Entering MUCs, Caiman N., 1991, presentation to New York Council on Graduate Medical Education. 1) Bureau of Health Professions (BHPr) Program Performance Data: BHPr CPMS. 2) Average U.S. Health Professions Workforce Underrepresented Minority Representation, compiled by HRSA, Bureau of Health Professions, National Center for Health Workforce Information and Analysis, from U.S. Bureau of the Census data. [Map 1:] Primary Care Health Personnel Shortage Areas – by County PC HPSA Status [dark gray] Full PC HPSA [light gray] Partial PC HPSA [white] Not a PC HPSA Current status: Counties with full or partial primary care HPSA designation. [Map 2:] Primary Care Health Personnel Shortage Areas Given Reduction of Family Physicians – by County PC HPSA Status (without FPs) [dark gray] Full PC HPSA (Existing/New) [light gray] Not a full PC HPSA Future status: This map shows the counties that would be full or partial primary care HPSAs given decline in family physicians. Source (for both maps above): Robert Graham Center in Washington; Data from the Federal Bureau of Health Professions’ Area Resource File for Physicians and HPSAs. Betancourt, J. R., A. R. Green, et al. (2002). Cultural Competence in Health Care: Emerging Frameworks and Practical Approaches. Boston, MA, The Commonwealth Fund. Blumenthal, D., E. Mort, et al. (1995). “The Efficacy of Primary Care for Vulnerable Population Groups.” Health Serv Res 30(1 Pt 2): 253-73. Brach, C. and I. Fraser (2000). “Can Cultural Competency Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities? A Review and Conceptual Model.” Medical Care Research and Review 57(Suppl 1): 181-21. Chassin, M.R., R.W. Gavin, and the National Roundtable on Health Care Quality. “The Urgent Need to Improve Health Care Quality.” JAMA 280, no. 11 (1998): 1000-1005. Cohen, J. J., B. A. Gabriel, et al. (2002). “The Case for Diversity in the Health Care Workforce.” Health Affairs (Millwood) 21(5): 90-102. Collins, K. S., D. L. Hughes, et al. (2002). Diverse Communities, Common Concerns: Assessing Health Care Quality for Minority Americans: Findings from The Commonwealth Fund 2001 Health Care Quality Survey. New York, NY, The Commonwealth Fund. Community Voices (March 2001) The Big Cavity: Decreasing Enrollment of Minorities in Dental Schools. W.K. Kellogg Foundation. Cooper-Patrick, L., D. Ford, et al. (2000). “Patient-Physician Race Concordance and Communication in Primary Care.” Journal of General Internal Medicine 15: 106. DHHS (1986). Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health. Volume II: Crosscutting Issues in Minority Health: Perspectives on National Health Data for Minorities, Minority Access to Health Care, Health Education and Information, Minority and other Professionals Serving Minority Communities. Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (1998). Program Accomplishment Statements, Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions, Rockville, MD, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2000). Comprehensive Performance Management System. Health Resources and Services Administration, Bureau of Health Professions. Rockville, MD, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2000). Healthy People 2010: Understanding and Improving Health. 2nd ed. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Washington, D.C., U.S. Government Printing Office. DHHS (2001). Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry: Comprehensive Review and Recommendations: Title VII, Section 747 of the Public Health Service Act. Report to Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Congress. Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2001). Cultural Competency Works: Using Cultural Competence to Improve the Quality of Health Care for Diverse Populations and Add Value to Managed Care Arrangements. Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2001). National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Health Care. Rockville, MD, Office of Minority Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2002). Advisory Committee on Training in Primary Care Medicine and Dentistry: Delivering the Good: Improving the Public’s Health by Enhancing the Primary Care/Public Health Interface in the United States. Report to Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and Congress. Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2002). Good Health For All: The National Leadership Summit on Eliminating Racial & Ethnic Disparities in Health. Rockville, MD, Office of Minority Health, Office of Public Health and Science, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. DHHS (2003). Volume II: Final FY 2003 GPRA Annual Performance Plan, Revised Final FY 2002 Performance Plan, and FY 2001 GPRA Annual Performance Report. Washington, D.C., U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Donaldson, M. S., K. D. Yordy, et al., Eds. (1996). Primary Care: America’s Health in a New Era. Washington, D.C. Institute of Medicine. Committee on the Future of Primary Care, Division of Health Care Services. Ferguson, J. A., M. Weinberger, et al. (1998). “Racial Disparity in Cardiac Decision-making: Results from Patient Focus Groups.” Arch Intern Med 158(13): 1450-3. Fiscella, K., P. Franks, et al. (2000). “Inequality in Quality: Addressing Socioeconomic, Racial, and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care.” JAMA 283(19): 2579-2584. Flores, G. M., M. Abreu, et al. (1988). “Access Barriers to Health Care for Latino Children.” Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med 152 (11): 1119-25. Gornick, M. (2000). “Disparities in Medicare Services: Potential Causes, Plausible Explanations and Recommendations.” Health Care Financing Review 21(4): 23-45. Hargraves, J. L. (2002). The Insurance Gap and Minority Health Care, 1997-2001: Tracking Report No. 2. Washington, D.C., Center for Studying Health System Change. Institute of Medicine (2002). Crossing the Quality Chasm: A New Health System for the 21st Century. Washington, D.C., Institute of Medicine, National Academy of Sciences. Lavizzo-Mourey R. and J.R. Knickman (2003). “Racial Disparities–the Need for Research and Action.” N Engl J Med 349(14): 1379-80. Like, R. C., R. P. Steiner, et al. (1996). “STFM Core Curriculum Guidelines. Recommended Core Curriculum Guidelines on Culturally Sensitive and Competent Health Care.” Fam Med 28(4): 291-7. Mayberry, R. M., F. Mili, et al. (1999). Racial and Ethnic Differences in Access to Medical Care: A Synthesis of Literature. Menlo Park, CA, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Morrison, R. S., S. Wallenstein, et al. (2000). “We Don’t Carry That–Failure of Pharmacies in Predominantly Nonwhite Neighborhoods to Stock Opioid Analgesics.” NEJM 342(14): 1023-1026. National Alliance for Hispanic Health (2001). A Primer for Cultural Proficiency: Towards Quality Health Services for Hispanics. Washington, D.C., Estrella Press. Newacheck, P. W., D. C. Hughs, et al. (1996). “Children’s Access to Primary Care: Differences by Race, Income and Insurance Status.” Pediatrics 97: 26-32. Politzer, R. M., K. S. Hardwick, et al. (1999). “Eliminating Primary Care Health Professional Shortage Areas: The Impact of Title VII Generalist Physician Education.” Journal of Rural Health 15(1): 11-20. Pulos, V. (1988) Outreach Strategies in State Children’s Health insurance Programs. Washington, D.C. Families USA Foundation. Saha, S., M. Komaromy, et al. (1999). “Patient-physician Racial Concordance and the Perceived Quality and Use of Health Care.” Archives of Internal Medicine 159: 997-1004. Series 10, National Health Interview Survey. Data From the National Health Interview Survey no. 207. Summary Health Statistics for U.S. Population, 1998. 53 pp. (PHS) 2002-1535. Smedley, B. D., A. Y. Stith, et al., Eds. (2002). Unequal Treatment: Confronting Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Health Care. Washington, D.C., National Academy Press. Starfield, B. and L. Simpson (1993). “Primary Care as Part of U.S. Health Services Reform.” JAMA 269(24): 3136-9. Statevig, S. and A. Wigton (2000). Racial and Ethnic Disparities: Key Findings from the National Survey of America’s Families, B-5, Assessing the New Federalism, Urban Institute, Washington, D.C. U.S. Census Bureau (2000). Population Projections Program, Population Division, U.S. Census Bureau: (NP-T5-B) Projections of the Resident Population by Race, Hispanic Origin, and Nativity: Middle Series, 2001 to 2005, and (NP-T5-G) Projections of the Resident Population by Race, Hispanic origin, and Nativity: Middle Series, 2050 to 2070). Health Disparities by State The appendix illustrates the disparities in care for racial and ethnic minorities in the United States. Specifically the appendix documents the disparities in care for Whites, Blacks, and Hispanics by State for the leading health indicators of (1) infant mortality (2) diabetes prevalence, (3) dental visits, and (4) age-adjusted death rates. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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