Cross-Cultural Health Care: Cultural Competence Organizational Assessments (CLAS)

The US Department of Health and Human Services published the first national standards on culturally and linguistically appropriate services (CLAS) in health care in December, 2000. These standards apply to all health care organizations and urge health care organizations to conduct cultural competence organizational assessments and diversity training. (To access the CLAS standards, click on the following link: http://www.omhrc.gov/templates/browse.aspx?lvl=2&lvlID=15)

Our CLAS-Based organizational assessment offers a thorough check-up of organizational systems, policies and practices that affect the care of culturally and linguistically diverse patients. It provides strategic answers to two key questions:

1. Who are your patients demographically? (What is known about your patients’: race, ethnicity, gender, language preferences, religion, socio-economic status etc.)
2. How effective are your organization's efforts to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate care to diverse patient populations?

Scope of the Assessment

Critical Measures has designed and implemented cultural competence organizational assessments at the:

1. Health Plan Level
2. Hospital Level and
3. Clinic Level

Expected Outcomes of the Assessment

Among the expected benefits or outcomes of conducting a CLAS-based organizational assessment on cultural and linguistic competence would be the following:

1. Identifies current strengths and weaknesses of systems, policies, practices and procedures serving culturally and linguistically diverse patients.
2. Clarifies whether the organization is or is not in legal/regulatory compliance with existing federal and state law and regulations relating to cultural and linguistic competence in health care.
3. Offers comparison of organizational performance against national best practices and industry leaders for culturally and linguistically competent care.
4. Creation of a client-specific strategy and action plan for redressing deficiencies based on results. This strategy would:
   • Identify priorities
   • Identify a timeline for implementation; and
   • Identify the resources required to implement needed changes.
5. Establish a baseline against which future improvements can be measured.

Cross-Cultural Health Care

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