Second National Conference on
Quality Health Care for Culturally Diverse Populations:
Strategy and Action for Communities, Providers, and a Changing Health System

I. Conference Rationale

The objective of the Second National Conference was to build on the success and the recommendations derived from the first conference by offering a forum for the presentation of information and development of models for service, clinical, government/policy, organization, and community benefit. While highlighting national, state, and local initiatives through plenary sessions, the conference featured opportunities for more intensive, interactive discussion among participants on "cutting edge" innovation and research. As the first conference created the opportunity for individuals to learn about contextual issues, the second conference highlighted model development and results with an emphasis on a more interactive format.

Attendees of the First National Conference, held October 1998 in New York City, had voiced a virtually unanimous opinion about the need for a second national conference. Reviewing the presentations and discussions further reinforced the benefit of a second conference for two major reasons: an acknowledgment that the conference had, in many ways, raised more questions than it answered; and the strong desire of conference attendees to reconvene to discuss in much greater depth the strategies and models that might be applied in their specific settings. Thus, while recognizing the value of the broad conference agenda that integrated business with community and health care delivery, participants strongly recommended that these issues warranted a more in-depth, interactive discussion, drawing additional attendees from managed care plans as well as a greater number of clinical practitioners. At the same time, individuals agreed that any future meetings should continue to feature the unique strength of the first national conference: the integrated, cross-disciplinary emphasis and the effort to correlate, if not integrate, market with service and social justice agendas.

The Second National Conference provided another opportunity for individuals from across the United States to discuss issues affecting the health of and health care for ethnically and culturally diverse populations. It also continued to serve as a national networking forum to promote formal and informal collaborations among attendees. However, unlike the first conference, which primarily detailed and reinforced the rationale for addressing cultural competence, outlined questions to consider in health care settings, and highlighted early initiative development, the Los Angeles meeting focused on innovative strategies–from early stage development to completed projects. The 2000 conference also featured expanded presentations and discussions on the role of leadership–including government, providers, and community–in the implementation of cultural competence; introduced new topics such as pharmaceutical treatment in the context of race/ethnicity; incorporated updates of existing and new state and federal requirements; and intensified discussions around measurement.

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