Creating a Welcoming Clinical Environment for LGBT Patients

The aim of this project was to develop a welcoming clinical environment for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) patients at Northern Counties Health Care (NCHC) and to serve as a model for community health centers across the nation that want to provide their LGBT communities with patient centered care that is affordable, compassionate and accessible. This was achieved by revising non-discrimination policies and new patient forms to be more inclusive of sexual orientations and gender identities, incorporating LGBT health learning modules into yearly provider and staff mandatories, and adding LGBT inclusive material into all waiting and exam rooms. The effectiveness of these interventions was evaluated using the Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) scoring criteria developed by the Human Rights Campaign. Future interventions include registering competent and sensitivity trained providers to the GLMA (Health Professionals Advancing LGBT Equality) provider directory, including data fields for sexual orientation and gender identity as part of the electronic health record (EHR) for all patients, conducting a community needs assessment with local LGBT groups such as Outright Vermont and NEK LGBTQ Advocacy Committee, developing a partnership with the DHMC Transgender Clinic for additional training in the management of hormone therapies, and measuring LGBT patient satisfaction through phone interviews.https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/fmclerk/1197/thumbnail.jp