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The population of the USA is growing increasingly diverse. Historic estimates suggest that over 30 per cent of the US population identifies itself as belonging to a racial group other than non-Hispanic White (Bernstein, 2006). This shift in racial diversity is expected to continue for several years to come (Minckler, 2008). The US population is growing larger and it is becoming increasingly diverse at the same time. While there is a noticeable shift in population diversity, people of color remain underrepresented in executive healthcare leadership roles. Estimates of the number of people of color in executive healthcare leadership roles suggest that people of color occupy less than 1 per cent of these leadership roles (Loftin, 2007). The racial composition of the leadership teams that influence healthcare policy remains predominantly male and predominantly White. This disparity of racial diversity within the two domains creates a situation wherein policies that guide access to healthcare services are being developed by groups of decision makers who may overlook key cultural norms of some racial groups during both the development and the enactment of healthcare policies.
The purpose of this research study was to identify the perceptions that White healthcare executives and executives of color have regarding the race of healthcare executives and how these perceptions affect access to care for people of color. The study was also aimed at identifying whether the perceptions of White healthcare executives and the perceptions of executives of color varied in terms of solutions for improving access to healthcare for people of color.
Additional objectives that were achieved as a result of conducting this research study were contributing to the existing body of literature that focuses on diversity in executive healthcare leadership, creating awareness about the absence of diversity in healthcare leadership roles and informing researchers, practitioners and policymakers about the impact that diversity in executive healthcare leadership may have on access to healthcare services.
Contemporary literature on the subject of diversity in executive healthcare leadership has focused primarily on the construct of cultural competency. Cultural competency is defined by the Office of Minority Health (OMH) as the ability to assimilate linguistic, attitudinal, behavioral and customary constructs across a number of different cultures in such a way that the healthcare provider can function effectively...