BizTimes: Why are diversity and inclusion important to your organization?
Theresa Jones: “At Children’s Wisconsin, we have a long-standing commitment to support all children. We are dedicated to providing the best possible care and experiences for kids and families, creating a strong and inclusive workplace culture, and building a better world so our children can grow up healthy.
To reduce the health inequities that exist in our community, we are removing obstacles to care. We’re opening clinics and providing other offerings in underserved communities and working to address social factors that impact health. This includes food insecurity, housing challenges and difficulties with transportation that make it hard to access to care. We want every child and family to have a fair and just opportunity to achieve their full potential.”
BizTimes: What diversity and inclusion efforts do have underway?
Jones: “Several of our current initiatives are related to enhancing our culture and developing our workforce.
We are currently establishing an Inclusion, Diversity and Equity Engagement Index to measure the impact of our work in areas like workforce diversity, authenticity and respect.
We’re also adding metrics for increasing the diversity of our team, including measures for leadership, professionals, nurses and our overall workforce, and engaging our caregivers through Inclusion, Diversity and Equity teams and Inclusion Resource Groups to help us make new connections.
Additionally, we are creating programs that help fill high-demand roles through education and through community partnerships that grow the skills of our current staff and new applicants.”
BizTimes: What benefits do you expect to see as you work to become more diverse and inclusive?
Jones: “Our goal is to create an environment that is welcoming to everyone. All members of our organization should be able to be their authentic selves.
The kids and families we serve can’t exceed the experience of our caregiving team. This is why we work to foster a culture that helps employees and providers be at their best. Respecting all differences – race, color, national origin, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation and more – is central to our expectations for how we treat each other.
When our teams better reflect the community we’re a part of, more kids and families will feel we can be a trusted partner in their health journey. This will allow for more open discussions, better health outcomes and a brighter future for our kids.”
