Press Releases: National
October 14, 2008
Kaiser Permanente Celebrates Diversity Leadership, Tradition and Achievements at 31st Annual Conference
Focus on Unconscious Bias to Enhance Care Delivery Featured at Annual Conference Themed "Diversity Integration: the Key to Performance Excellence"
OAKLAND, Calif. – Signaling Kaiser Permanente's journey toward its fourth decade of diversity leadership and cultural competency, the health care organization's 2008 National Diversity Conference takes place Oct. 15-17, in Universal City, Calif. The organization's premier diversity educational forum features some of the nation's foremost experts on diversity-related issues and annually draws 1,000 Kaiser Permanente physicians, executives, board members, other clinicians, human resources and diversity officers and a cross-section of other professional disciplines represented in its workforce. Kaiser Permanente has been regularly recognized as a leader in diversity issues and is proud to have a workforce composed of 74 percent women and 56 percent people of color, mirroring the racial, ethnic and gender composition of the communities it serves.
"Our 2008 National Diversity Conference continues a long and proud Kaiser Permanente tradition that now spans more than three decades," said Ronald Knox, senior vice president and chief diversity officer, Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. "This annual educational forum celebrates the organization’s many diversity accomplishments and underscores the new diversity horizons that lie ahead to fully integrate diversity into our core business and leverage our diversity expertise to provide high-quality, culturally informed care to our members and patients."
This year's conference will host an impressive array of internal and external experts on topical and leading-edge diversity issues, concepts, practices and trends in diversity management, culturally competent care delivery, linguistic services and care access, workforce diversity and marketing to diverse populations. Among the notable conference offerings are:
- The phenomenon of unconscious bias and its implications for the reduction of health disparities, workforce productivity and perceptions of fairness and equity in the workplace.
- A highly acclaimed interactive theater group that will expose the operation and impact of micro-inequities in the workplace.
- An "eavesdropping conversation" among nationally renowned experts discussing some of today's most pressing diversity issues.
- Marketing Kaiser Permanente to Generations X, Y and the all encompassing Hip Hop culture is one of the novel presentations focusing on generational diversity.
- A unique presentation on people with disabilities focusing on health care marketing, employment and provider of choice opportunities.
- A session to acquire skills to successfully manage the multiple generations that comprise the labor market.
The conference also will feature 30 interactive workshops on topics ranging from A Conversation with Connie Rice, Esq., and Diversity Return on Investment: A Business Model to cutting-edge offerings on culturally competent care and linguistic service excellence; the Kaiser Permanente Diversity Hall of Fame, R.J. Erickson and HIV/AIDS Awards; a best-in-class regional showcase; and diversity experiential stations.
Kaiser Permanente has been recognized this year for corporate diversity leadership by the following organizations and publications:
- Human Rights Campaign Foundation & the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association – Healthcare Equality Index
- Black Collegian Magazine – Top 100 Diversity Employers
- Diversity MBA Magazine – Top 50 Companies
- DiversityInc – Top 50 Companies for Diversity (2008; 2007; 2006)
- Asian Enterprise Magazine – Best Companies for Asian Americans (2008; 2007)
- Workforce Management Magazine – Optimas Award (Ethical Category)
- Latina Style Magazine – LS50
- Human Rights Campaign – Corporate Equality Index (2008; 2007; 2006; 2005)
- The California Diversity Council – DiversityFIRST Award
- Gay and Lesbian Medical Association in association with Pfizer – GLMA Achievement Award
About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve 8.6 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: www.kp.org/newscenter.
