NURS FPX 4000 Assignment 4 DEI and Ethics in Healthcare

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Capella university

NURS-FPX4000 Developing a Nursing Perspective

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Date

DEI and Ethics in Healthcare

Integrating Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) within healthcare settings plays a vital role in cultivating a supportive work environment, boosting staff retention, and enhancing community well-being. By embracing individuals from all backgrounds and identities, DEI initiatives promote fairness, reduce discrimination, and ensure equal access to care. This evaluation explores the impact of DEI on patient outcomes, examines how unconscious bias and microaggressions influence care delivery, and presents practical strategies to address and overcome these challenges. 

The Evolution and Impact of DEI in Healthcare

As a nurse, my position is crucial as I can reflect on how DEI affects patients’ healthcare. DEI has gone from an ancillary to a core priority in healthcare throughout my career. Initially, DEI initiatives were narrow, aimed exclusively at workforce diversity, to a broader scope of addressing systemic disparities in care and outcomes. However, DEI is now considered necessary to provide equitable, patient-centered care and inclusive environments for patients and healthcare providers. The increased awareness of health disparities and the need to serve diverse populations has powered this shift.

The DEI approach has become broader over time. For example, enacting National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services (CLAS) to promote DEI is important. These standards have fueled healthcare organizations to adopt practices to ensure equal access to care and dignity of patients’ cultural, linguistic, and social needs. Effective, fair, and respectful health services are needed that can accommodate multiple cultural wellness views and behavioral requirements, preference languages, medical knowledge, and other interpersonal needs (US Department of Health and Human Services, 2025). Therefore, patients are recognized and supported, which contributes to improving medical results. One example is offering cultural competency training, which helps enhance healthcare professionals’ communication skills and increases their awareness of diverse perspectives on health (Vella et al., 2022). This, in turn, enables them to deliver personalized patient care, leading to improved outcomes and a reduction in healthcare disparities.

NURS FPX 4000 Assignment 4 DEI and Ethics in Healthcare

Today, DEI efforts have extended to a more diverse set of demands, from diverse individuals with impairments to low income. For instance, the Americans with Disability Act (ADA) guarantees that individuals with impairments have equal rights and opening as normal individuals. Individuals who are disabled have access to civil rights provisions under the ADA that are equivalent to those afforded to people based on their race, race, gender, background, age, and faith. In my nursing role, I have observed how laws like the Affordable Care Act (ACA) encourage the expansion of facilities and medical care for minority groups and persons with poor financial standing.

According to Osmani and Khudri (2024), the ACA has been linked to reducing medical inequalities among ethnic and racial minorities, like having a private physician and postponing care due to expenses, via extending insurance programs. Increasing collaboration among interdisciplinary teams in the DEI panel has improved inclusivity. Team diversity leads to inclusive care efforts, and staff contributes unique opinions to patient care, offering integrated care. These changes increase patient happiness by ensuring care is tailored to the patient’s needs. As DEI continues to change, it remains a pillar of initiatives to resolve disparities and deliver high-quality, equitable care to all communities.

Unconscious Bias Leads to Microaggressions

Unconscious bias plays a significant role in perpetuating health disparities. Healthcare professionals may unknowingly harbor prejudices based on a patient’s race, gender, or other characteristics, which can subtly influence their judgment and behavior (Jones, 2022). Though unintentional, these biases can shape how I perceive and interact with patients. When left unchecked, they may manifest as microaggressions or subtle negative interactions, particularly towards individuals from marginalized communities.

Such biases are often ingrained through societal norms and cultural influences, leading people to form automatic assumptions about others based on visible identifiers. For instance, a healthcare provider might unconsciously believe that a patient from a certain racial group is less likely to follow medical advice, which could affect the level of care provided. This kind of thinking stems from rigid stereotypes and often presents as subtle yet harmful behavior—microaggressions that send the wrong message to patients and can make them feel devalued.

NURS FPX 4000 Assignment 4 DEI and Ethics in Healthcare

Implicit biases reflect internalized attitudes that shape how healthcare workers interpret and communicate with others, frequently without conscious awareness. These attitudes are typically learned through life experiences, culture, and social upbringing (Jones, 2022). For example, a nurse may instinctively gravitate toward patients with similar cultural or socioeconomic backgrounds, believing them to be more cooperative or easier to relate to. This preference can create disparities in attention and care, leading to marginalized patients receiving less support. These underlying biases may also cause healthcare professionals to overlook the specific needs of minority patients, thereby contributing to gaps in care.

According to Jones (2022), implicit prejudices can influence crucial decisions regarding diagnoses, treatments, and patient assessments. Microaggressions, though often subtle, can deeply affect individuals, leaving them feeling alienated and disrespected. For example, when a patient is subjected to dismissive comments about their culture or language, it can erode trust, reduce care satisfaction, and hinder communication. The emotional toll of such experiences is considerable, potentially leading to decreased self-worth, social withdrawal, and psychological distress. As Desai et al. (2023) explain, these inequities impact the affected individuals and burden healthcare professionals, weaken the care environment, and compromise the overall quality of services by contributing to a toxic and emotionally unsafe workplace. 

Strategies for Overcoming Bias in Healthcare

Laying down the tools to combat biases in health care is the forced necessity of consciously revamping the culture and processes of health care. One way to do this is to train healthcare professionals in cultural humility. Smith and Martini (2023) note that such training can substantially decrease the occurrence of microaggressions and discrimination against minority staff and boost job satisfaction and productivity. Cultural humility is a continuous process of self-reflection and learning that helps staff understand and respect the diversity of colleagues and patients. Meaningful cross-cultural connections with a diverse workforce also support deepening understanding and appreciation of diverse perspectives and reducing prejudiced behaviors in clinical environments.

Transformational Leadership (TL) is equally important in a healthcare setting. TL embodies open communication, emotional intelligence, and cultural sensitivity to promote inclusive practices. Moyinoluwa et al. (2024) assert that TL creates innovative and compassionate spaces for addressing bias effectively. Diverse leadership and staff are essential to deliver culturally competent care and improve communication and trust with underserved patients. People of underrepresented groups who are leaders can promote policies that lower health disparities. An inclusive culture that benefits patients and staff is enhanced by building diversity at all levels of an organization. However, to achieve lasting success, the organization will have to make a commitment from leadership, have resources, and maintain transparency. By doing these things, these efforts will sustain DEI progress and continue DEI work to create a more inclusive, fair, and effective healthcare system. 

Impact of DEI on Health Outcomes and Patient Satisfaction

DEI in healthcare is vital in enhancing health outcomes and patient satisfaction. Prioritizing DEI allows healthcare organizations to develop environments where providers respect and value their diverse patient populations’ cultural practices, beliefs, and preferences. It erases disparities and access to care, improving disadvantaged groups’ outcomes. For instance, culturally competent care, which is the core of DEI, allows culturally attuned staff to communicate with culturally diverse patients, which results in stronger patient-provider relationships and higher levels of trust (Smith & Martini, 2023).

DEI in healthcare allows for an increase in patients’ adherence and management of chronic disease. Inclusive medical settings improve client satisfaction through engagement with their care, which results in trust and participation. This is especially important for underserved populations through equal care services. Diverse staff and leaders, especially with incorporating community health workers, can facilitate interaction and empathy, bridging gaps between healthcare providers and marginalized populations. This improves patient-staff relationships and allows patients to control their well-being. Vella et al. (2022) stated that a diverse medical workforce allows for culturally appropriate therapy to facilitate health fairness and higher awareness of diverse needs and patient insights, which results in effective care and improved outcomes.

Conclusion

Integrating DEI in healthcare fosters equitable, respectful, and inclusive care environments that benefit both patients and staff. By addressing unconscious bias and promoting culturally competent practices, health outcomes and patient satisfaction improve—especially among marginalized groups. Continued commitment to DEI principles ensures a fairer, more effective healthcare system for all.

References

Desai, V., Conte, A. H., Nguyen, V. T., Shin, P., Sudol, N. T., Hobbs, J., & Qiu, C. (2023). Veiled harm: Impacts of microaggressions on psychological safety and physician burnout. The Permanente Journal, 27(2), 169–178. https://doi.org/10.7812/tpp/23.017

Jones, D. D. (2022). Examining the unconscious racial biases and attitudes of physicians, nurses, and the public: Implications for future health care education and practice. Health Equity, 6(1), 375–381. https://doi.org/10.1089/heq.2021.0141 

NURS FPX 4000 Assignment 4 DEI and Ethics in Healthcare

Moyinoluwa, F. L. (2024). Transformative leadership strategies in healthcare: A panacea for fostering a positive work environment. British Journal of Multidisciplinary and Advanced Studies, 5(2), 1–11. https://doi.org/10.37745/bjmas.2022.0452

Osmani, A. R., & Khudri, M. M. (2024). The Affordable Care Act and racial disparities in healthcare utilization: New evidence from employer mandate. The Review of Black Political Economy/Review of Black Political Economy. https://doi.org/10.1177/00346446241239657 

Smith, K. L., & Martini, J. (2023). Patient-provider communication and interactions. Patient-Provider Communication and Interactions, 195–207. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-29171-5_14 

US Department of Health and Human Services, 2025. CLAS standards. US Department of Health and Human Services, 2025.gov. https://thinkculturalhealth.hhs.gov/clas/standards

Vella, E., White, V. M., & Livingston, P. (2022). Does cultural competence training for health professionals impact culturally and linguistically diverse patient outcomes? A systematic review of the literature. Nurse Education Today, 118(1). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2022.105500

NURS FPX 4000 Assignment 4 DEI and Ethics in Healthcare