PROVIDENCE, R.I. — HopeHealth has earned the highest national credential for cultural competency in serving and supporting older adults who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT).
Last year, more than 80% of HopeHealth staff completed one hour of SAGECare training covering an overview of the needs, concerns and unique history of LGBT older adults and how to improve the quality of care provided to them. The curriculum was developed by SAGE, the country’s oldest and largest LGBT advocacy and services organization.
Additionally, at least 80% of HopeHealth’s leadership team completed four hours of SAGECare training. By meeting the 80% benchmark, HopeHealth achieved platinum status.
“We have always prioritized person-centered support and care,” HopeHealth President & CEO Diana Franchitto said. “Now by partnering with SAGECare, we are demonstrating our strong commitment to providing the best care possible while making each patient feel comfortable being who they are.”
The 80% training standard has symbolic importance because an estimated 80% of the general population rely on legal or blood-related family members for caregiving. But LGBT people are twice as likely to live alone and four times less likely to have children, which can increase their risk of social isolation as they age. Loneliness and isolation have been shown to be associated with poor physical and mental health.
LGBT older adults may face challenges in seeking and receiving adequate and inclusive care or aging-related social services due to the inability to rely on traditional family supports. As a 2021 SAGECare Platinum credentialed provider, HopeHealth staff now have the communication tools and information needed to create a culture of dignity and respect for all their patients and their relationships in older age.
The SAGECare credential is an extension of HopeHealth’s work focused on diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI). The organization’s DEI Statement of Commitment expresses its pledge to cultivating a diverse, equitable and inclusive workplace. It reads as follow:
“We value everything that makes you, you. At HopeHealth we care about creating a place where everybody feels valued. Getting there starts with a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion. Join us in this effort. Together, we promise to listen carefully, learn humbly and respect each other’s differences.
If you would like more information about SAGECare Training visit sageusa.care.
About HopeHealth
For more than a century, HopeHealth has provided high quality, compassionate care to people in various stages of illness in communities in Rhode Island and Massachusetts. Its roots began in home care in 1908 and then in hospice in 1976, coming together as HopeHealth in 2011 providing home care, palliative care, and hospice care. As the second oldest hospice in the country and one of the largest nonprofit providers of palliative and hospice care in New England, HopeHealth has set the gold standard in serious illness and end-of-life care. HopeHealth is the major teaching affiliate for hospice and palliative care of The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.