Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Diversity and Inclusion Committee

Our Diversity and Inclusion Committee was founded on the premise that creating a climate that fosters belonging, respect and value for all leads to innovation, increased performance, increased staff engagement and the ability to positively impact patient satisfaction. Our committee is focused on increasing inclusion amongst our employees, faculty, students, trainees and volunteers by working with the following subcommittees:

Fostering Health Equity in the Community

Health equity ensures that all people have access to services and opportunities that enable healthy living. To raise awareness about health equity, our team performs research and seeks to effect change through health programs that help children in our community who experience inequities. We also work with the community to promote career opportunities and mentorship programs at Children’s National:

• Advancing health equity. There is clear evidence showing that structural racism is responsible for significant health disparities for people of color. Through research, community partnerships and advocacy, we are combatting these serious public health concerns.
• Community Benefit Program. Children’s National extends beyond diversity and inclusion to help build communities where every child can grow up stronger. Our Community Benefit Program provides treatment, or promotes health and healing, as a response to identified community needs.
• School Health Collaborative. We understand that children spend much of their time in school; therefore we envision a school-friendly health care system designed to ensure all children reach optimal health and achieve their full academic potential. For more than two decades, our School Health Collaborative has served the school system by providing more than two dozen school-based programs (including oral health, mental health, reproductive health and school nursing) and administering 20 school-based health centers in three public school jurisdictions.
• Mentorship and career opportunities. Through a variety of community partnerships and programs, we introduce adolescents, teenagers and medical students to a future in medicine. We also provide them with access to biomedical research opportunities.

LGBTQ+ Care

We support our LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning/queer) patients through several programs and services:

• The Youth Pride Clinic
• Gender Development Program
• Gender and Autism Program

Read more about LGBTQ+ support resources at Children’s National.

Resources for Families

Children’s National offers services to ensure that patients and families are connected to support systems while receiving world-class treatment at our hospital:

• International Patient Services (in English and Arabic)
• Language Services
• Recursos en Español
• Parent Navigator Program
• Spiritual Care
• Patient and Family Advisory Council
• Social Work
• Support Groups
• Therapeutic Pups