making the business case for culturally and linguistically appropriate ...

Major Themes• Minority and LEP Consumers are a Business Market. As the US populationchanges and the LEP population increases, successful health care organizations mustdevelop business strategies to address the needs of these populations. This willbecome increasingly true as we approach 2050 when the census predictions projectthat the percentage of minority populations will equal or exceed the percentage ofwhat are now non-minority populations.• Cost-effective Spending Leads to Subsequent Savings. Implementing CLAS projectscan be cost effective for health care organizations.• Government Requirements Compel Organizations to Take on CLAS. Title VI of theCivil Rights Act and the CLAS Standards are required for equity in health care.• CLAS is the Right Thing to Do. Many organizations that have engaged in orimplemented CLAS standards, as described throughout this report, are doing sobecause they believe it is the right thing to do, and not because they are required to doso by law or regulation. Organizations with a history of meeting the needs of diversepatient populations view their role in addressing the needs of all patients they serve asan important part of their organizational culture.Key Findings and Lessons LearnedThis report documents seven key findings and lessons learned on the best ways to implementCLAS in a variety of health care settings. These include:• Linguistically appropriate services may be the first logical step for successfulimplementation of the CLAS standards;• Barriers to CLAS implementation (real and perceived) need to be identified andovercome;• Workforce and bilingual employee development is key to implementing CLAS;• Exploration and integration of community partnerships and resources is importantfor successful CLAS interventions;• Technology can be useful in supporting a system for serving LEP populations;• Performance measurement should be a component of any CLAS project plan, and• There are many existing resources that provide information on how to implementCLAS in health care settings.Subsequent to the release of the CLAS standards, the number of health care organizationsacross the country that have voluntarily implemented projects and initiatives aimed atcomplying with the CLAS standards has grown. Many organizations, including thosehighlighted in this report, have for years prior to publication of the CLAS standards strived toprovide culturally competent care. 3 The foresight and commitment of senior leadersresponding to changing U.S. demographics led these organizations to alter the way theyprovide health care to people outside the majority culture, including those with languagebarriers.3 Cultural and Linguistic Competence in Health - a set of congruent behaviors, attitudes, and policies that cometogether in a system, agency, or among professionals that enables effective work in cross-cultural situations.Office on Minority Health. http://www.omhrc.gov/templates/browse.aspx?lvl=2&lvlID=117