CrescentCare
CrescentCare provides vital services to those who come from traditionally medically underserved communities, including the service industry, the LGBTQ community, the uninsured and underinsured, immigrants, and people of color. As a provider embedded in the Deep South, it is essential that our staff understands the history and legacy of slavery, implicit bias, and the ongoing impacts of systemic racism to effectively work together, and to provide culturally competent care to our diverse population. Further, many of CrescentCare’s grant-funded programs necessitate an acknowledgement of and targeted outreach to intersectional minority populations including substance use disorder treatment for racial/ethnic minority populations at high risk for HIV/AIDS, and behavioral health models to improve HIV health outcomes for Black men and transgender women who have sex with men. Refusal to acknowledge this intersectionality prevents us from supporting our staff and effectively working to improve health outcomes in our community.
“The President’s executive order banning diversity training is nothing more than a misguided distraction seeking to sow division in our nation,” said Noel Twilbeck, Chief Executive Officer at CrescentCare. “As a Federally Qualified Health Center, we are a provider of crucial services for the most vulnerable in our community. Our patients and staff reflect the diversity of the city of New Orleans, many of whom live at the intersection of being Black, Brown, LGBTQ, an immigrant, or living with HIV. As such, training on systemic racism, sexism, and implicit bias are essential in addressing the disparities that exist within our organization, communities, and health care systems.”