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CONFERENCE
OBJECTIVE STATEMENT
See also Conference Background
The field of cultural competence in health care has grown in prominence
and maturity over the last ten years. Coupled with an increasing national
focus on the demographic and political strength of diverse populations
in America, the conference presenters together with our National Advisory
Group have determined that 2004 would be an opportune time to bring the
Fourth National Conference on Quality Health Care For Culturally Diverse
Populations to Washington, DC. As home to many national health organizations
and major Federal health agencies, Washington offers an excellent opportunity
to showcase the best of this field to national health leaders, and to
engage them in dialogue on how to incorporate the needs of culturally
diverse populations into national health agendas and mainstream health
care practice.
Since our first national meeting in 1998, this conference series has
emphasized a public-private blend of community advocacy, service delivery,
policy-making, civil rights enforcement, research and leadership development
to improve the health of diverse populations. Cross-cutting themes in
conference sessions stress practical innovations, while presentations
on cutting-edge research have offered continuity over time where experts
have presented their design and early findings at one conference and announced
their intention to discuss their final report at the next. Communication
extends beyond the conference through posting of supporting materials,
proceedings and announcements on the www.diversityRx.org
website, and the launch of a new listserv on cultural competence practice,
CLAS-talk.
The proposed agenda and objectives for the Fourth National Conference
maintain this tradition. The unique needs of culturally diverse populations
are gaining prominence in national movements to improve the quality of
health care. The objectives of the Fourth National Conference are to:
- showcase the best of culturally competent programs, services, and
policies to national health organizations and leaders,
- disseminate research and expertise to advance promising interventions,
and
- develop partnerships to improve access to and quality of care for
all Americans.
Remaining faithful to comments and evaluations from previous conference
participants, the format of the fourth national conference will emphasize
sessions that maximize audience participation, while continuing to integrate
plenary sessions on key national policy issues. This conference seeks
to facilitate learning as an ongoing, dynamic and social process, and
strives to offer engaging sessions in which diverse participants can form
bonds, participate as learners and teachers, and feel integral to the
learning process. We believe presenters should make content relevant and
meaningful, and offer ways to process information through dialogue, reflection,
and application.
Using familiar and innovative conference formats, we propose three goals
to present conference material and expand on the traditional base of conference
participants.
Goal 1. Support people who are already involved
in cultural competence
Conference evaluations continually emphasize the importance of these
gatherings to those involved in developing, implementing, refining and
evaluating cultural competence interventions and theories. As in previous
years, we will offer half and full day intensive skills-building workshops,
as well as two and a half days of plenary conference sessions and workshops.
We will also offer opportunities to share expertise and experiences through
roundtable discussions and peer-to-peer practice advancement sessions.
Goal 2. Make cultural competence part of the
major national health care agendas
This conference will continue its focus on integrating cultural competence
into different aspects of the health care quality agenda, such as patient
safety and patient-centered care. We will identify leaders in these agenda
areas and invite them to attend and speak at the conference and/or to
sponsor conference sessions. We will also work with one or two lead agencies
to bring together these agenda leaders and cultural competence experts
before or after the conference for a 1-day meeting to discuss the role
of cultural competence in these national agendas, brainstorming concerns
of common ground and developing partnerships and agendas for future work.
Goal 3. Raise awareness among the uninitiated
Health care issues that affect culturally diverse populations are still
largely isolated as "minority" or "immigrant" health
issues by many mainstream health care organizations. The term "cultural
competence" is something of a buzzword with uncertain content attached
to it, and awareness of best practices and outcomes is limited. Our goal
is to deliver a broad but detailed and consistent message to a select
number of mainstream health constituencies about the need for, goals of,
and content of culturally competent health care.
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