Issue link: https://beckershealthcare.uberflip.com/i/1475102
32 QUALITY IMPROVEMENT & MEASUREMENT US pediatricians' group to cast aside race-based guidelines By Molly Gamble T he American Academy of Pediatrics is advocating for the elim- ination of race-based medicine in any form and recognizing race as a "historically derived social construct that has no place as a biologic proxy," according to a policy statement released May 2. Joseph Wright, MD, is lead author of the policy statement, "Elimi- nating Race-Based Medicine." Dr. Wright also serves as chief health equity officer of the University of Maryland Medical System in Baltimore. "is effort calls for acknowledging the impact that differential lived experiences have on individual and population health outcomes through a race-conscious health equity lens rather than through approaches that have inappropriately identified skin color as an inde- pendent, risk-adjusting variable," Dr. Wright said. As part of the policy, the AAP will critically examine, deconstruct, retire or revise all practice guidelines and policies that include race assignment as a part of clinical decision-making. It also recommends professional organizations and medical societies "identify and critical- ly examine organizational policies and practice guidelines that may incorporate race or ethnicity as independent variables or modifying factors." e AAP will also leverage relationships with medical schools, academic health systems, schools of medicine and accrediting bodies to ensure health equity curricular content, including a focus on the elimination of race-based medicine. It will seek to reframe appropri- ate social determinants of health measures. e AAP will also ensure all its authors, editors, presenters, media spokespersons and other content contributors recognize race as a social construct only. "e evolution of modern medicine has produced incredible advance- ments and accomplishments in healthcare," Dr. Wright said. "But we must acknowledge and address the stark inequities that persist in leaving vulnerable populations behind. We are better than this. Now is the time for change." n CMS releases health equity plan, encourages leaders to participate By Georgina Gonzalez C MS released a multipronged health equity strategy in April to be used throughout the agency and is encouraging healthcare leaders to get involved in creating sustainable, equitable strategies. Each CMS office has been charged with improving health equity by embedding several strategies into all work. The strategies include expanding outreach of existing programs, evaluating policies to determine how CMS can support safety-net providers and expanding and standardizing the use of data. CMS is also encouraging health leaders to take health equity seriously and fold it into their own system's strat- egies. To do so it is convening providers, leaders, payers and state officials to share best practices and learn how to create effective health equity initiatives. "We can't achieve our health system goals until everyone can attain the highest level of health. That's why I am inviting the healthcare industry to work alongside CMS as we transform the way patients are cared for in our country," said Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, CMS administra- tor. "Health equity will be embedded within the DNA of CMS and serve as the lens through which we view all of our work." n 8 health systems join health equity initiative By Georgina Gonzalez E ight health systems have joined an American Medical Association health equity initiative that provides mentorship and networking, the AMA reported June 20. Through a collaboration with The Joint Commission and Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, the AMA creat- ed the AMA Advancing Equity through Quality and Safety Peer Network. The program runs for a year and provides participating health systems with networking and men- torship to embed equity into the systems' practices and improve the health equity of patients, healthcare workers and the community. Here are the first eight organizations, representing about 20,000 physicians who have joined the program: 1. Atlantic Health System (Morristown, N.J.) 2. Children's Hospital of Philadelphia 3. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute (Boston) 4. Ochsner Health (New Orleans) 5. University of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics (Iowa City, Iowa) 6. The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center (Houston) 7. University of Wisconsin Hospitals & Clinics (Madison, Wis.) 8. Vanderbilt University Medical Center (Nashville, Tenn.) n