Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion in US Healthcare Facilities

Hello and welcome to our audience all over the world you are watching onwards and upwards. Everything a global ours needs to know to live and work in the United States. My name is Luciana Da Silva, and I'm your host, I work with Connetics USA Nursing Agency. We are a direct hire company, bringing health care workers from all over the world to live and work in the United States and prosper. If you would like to work as a health care worker in a US health care facility, please go to our website, ConneticsUSA.com/apply , fill out an application and our recruiters will get in touch with you and start helping you with your journey to the United States. We have an amazing show for you today, we are going to be speaking about d i, which means diversity, equity inclusion, and we cannot forget about belonging. Let's bring in our guests today and our experts who will be speaking on this subject. We have Gerry, Albert's and Christian welcome so much to the show all three of you. Let's do some introductions. Christian, tell us about yourself. Or thank you so much. My name is Christian. I came from Nigeria. Looks like Christian may be having some technical difficulties there. We'll come back to you. Gerry, if you want to go ahead and introduce yourself.

Hi, everyone. My name is Gerry. I'm the workplace diversity manager at ame and healthcare and my role involves really supporting our internal di strategy, ensuring that we have initiatives to support a welcoming and inclusive workplace for our corporate team members and and also coordinating the employee resource groups who are so critical in creating a culture of belonging. I'm happy to be here. Welcome, we're happy to see you as well. We also have Albert, please tell us about yourself. Hi, I'm a marketplace leader and responsible for everything in the marketplace that would include supplier diversity and staffing over healthcare professionals into our different clients and then managing our client relationships and creating best practices in that area to help eliminate social determinants of health and health equity, looking at disparities in the healthcare industry, working with our clients and trying to come up with better ways to manage that part of the process.

Thank you Albert. I want to say hello to our entire audience please put it in the chat where you're from your name we love seeing people from all over the world who are watching our show we have Merlin from saying hello from the Philippines. We also have joy hi from Dubai. I love how that rhymes we got Christian back to Christian let's see if we could pick up where you left off there yourself okay so um like I was saying crystal it looks like we may have lost Christian again. It's okay we are live everybody this is what happens we are live we have oh saying hello Jennifer from Nigeria saying Hello Daniel is saying hello from Riyadh people from all over the world. Let's get started. So I want to start with Albert's here. Basics okay, what is d e i Albert you're on mute there I have to put $1 in the jar. So when you think about D E I know my internal partner Gerry and I we worked on D E I are we think about it from a marketplace perspective. dei diversity includes a range of characteristics that make an individual or group different from another right this includes and but not limited to race, ethnicity, gender, age, national origin, religion, disability, sexual orientation, socio economic status, education, marital status, language and even physical appearance. And then so the definition of diversity also includes diversity of thought if you have two different people in the room that thinking differently, so in and they might have, you know, different perspectives values, so it recognizes the individuals in what But they affiliate with on really multiple different levels and, and identities.

So we're really, I think diversity is probably the easiest thing that we have to achieve. But if you have two different people in the room, you have diversity, equity is the fair treatment of, and access and opportunity and advancement for all people, while at the same time striving to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of some groups or limited access to or distribution of resources. And then there's this, there's there's also equality, right? A, I see equity as a process to achieving full equality, right, so you, you can't have one without the other and one actually drives the other. And then when you think about inclusion, inclusion is the act of creating environments in which any individual or group can be, and feel welcomed, respected, supported, and valued. To fully participate, they can bring their whole selves to work. And that's the culture that we want to really create as we drive diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, advocacy, into our, into our organization, into the marketplaces, into the organizations that sit in the marketplaces. And some folks see it as society you have, you know, the you have the workforce, you have the workplace, you have the marketplace, then you have this greater peace that we refer to as society. So we're looking for, you know, looking for ways where we can be inclusive and welcoming. And creating a welcoming climate that embraces differences and offers respect in words and actions for all people. So it's extremely important that that, that, that as we're that as we're thinking about this today, and thinking together about this, in the future, whatever groups you're in, I think inclusion is pretty is pretty much in my opinion, one of the most important things that you can that you can achieve in D AI, because without inclusion, these people can't come to work and bring their whole selves to work. So I'll stop there.

We have so much more to cover, so please don't stop. And please don't stop putting your names and where you're from in the chat. We'd love to hear from you. Also, you have two amazing experts here to talk about this subject. So please put your questions in the chat for our experts and we'll be happy to answer them. Throughout the show. Annie is saying hello from Zambia, Rona saying howdy from Texas. Howdy, Neos saying hello from the Philippines, our lien. Good morning, everyone. This is our lien from Jamaica. Geneva is saying hello from the Philippines. We have people from all over the world watching and joining us today. And of course, we're talking about diversity, equity and inclusion, just as Albert was saying, and there's nothing more diverse than nurses from all over the world working in the United States for sure. Gerry tell us why is dei important for organizations? Um, simple. You know, we, d i, the, the the focus of D E I is about enhancing the human experience at work. Right. So if you think about it pretty simply, it's how do we have a more affirming positive and just welcoming experience in a place where we spend so much of our time, right, I think I think don't don't quote me on this, but about I believe we spent about 80,000 hours of our lives working right. And in the past, oh, sorry. Go ahead.

Yeah, I just said, wow, yeah, that's a lot. That's a lot. So think about it. I mean, if we spend so much time at work, and I think historically in the past, we've sort of, we I use loosely as as humans as society. We've been sort of asked to compartmentalize ourselves a little bit to separate our personal from the professional. And I think that post pandemic taught us that, you know, that's not really real, right? We our outside world impacts everything and impacts who we are at work. And with sort of remote and hybrid work as well. We've introduced the workplace into into the home as well. We've We've also understood that belonging and a sense of inclusion, a sense of connection to work really drives performance, it drives profitability, it drives root tension. So, so simply it matters because people matter. And is this practice of Dei? Is that a standard practice in workplaces all over the United States? How does that work? Exactly? And how is that trained? Albert? I would say we would, we would like to think it is right, we would like to think every organization has engaged in diversity, equity and inclusion into some respect to having that. But be to be honest, there's some organizations that aren't engaging in Dei, and to intermediaries point. I mean, those folks that are out there missing out on profitability, . They're there is suffering, and that and that costs money.

So dei is, is something that we would expect to be utilized across the United States and even around the world. I mean, when if you look at the history of Dei, a lot of what we're doing in the United States has been informed by other countries with what we do in the United Kingdom, you think about LGBT and, and marriage, the, you know, the first legislation that passed was in was in, in the United Kingdom, and then it came to the United States. So it's just not something that's, that is recognized here in the United States. But we would, we're, we're, we're pressing towards that mark. And certainly, we want to help expedite other companies that are not engaged in, in diversity, equity inclusion, but those that are, are really reaping the benefits simply because it does increase. There's studies that have been done where it increases revenue, and it creates innovation with within the organization, because you have more than one culture, one person, one, one race, one ethnicity, who's engaged in thinking together to help create innovative product, innovative solutions, innovative, innovative, services, that that help, that helped drive that helped drive the economy. So in, in, in my opinion, that it's not in every organization that we're striving to get it there.

Gerry, what are some examples of different dei programs that different hospitals can offer a mn healthcare which Connetics is a part of a mn healthcare has an amazing program as well tell us a little bit about that, and how it works just to give our audience an idea of how a program could work. So to Al's point earlier is that, you know, D E I is contextualized differently within each setting, right? Our organizations are a reflection of our larger world. And one thing we have the center as true is that when we bring different people from different walks of life together, and when we're not sort of aware and conscious of sort of each other's journey, what's important to each other in terms of beliefs, in terms of, of existence and identity, then that that can create conflict at times. And so depending on what the culture is, at an organization, in a hospital setting, and how diverse it is, there's, there's a variety of programs that could exist such as, you know, employee resource groups, to be able to build connections amongst colleagues who share similar experiences, beliefs, and identities. I think it's also important to keep in mind, the, the immigrant experience, you know, I well, I was born in the US, I really identify with the immigrant experience, because both of my parents and all of my siblings are from Mexico. And so, when you come to the US as an as an immigrant, and, and sort of for the first time perhaps become racialized, and and identified as an other because in your in your home country, right?

Everyone looks like you everyone speaks your language. And so then you come to the US and you have this sort of awakening this, this this racialized experience that is new. And and I think that that's an important thing to consider. Because, in, in, in your native country, you might you there, there might be some taboos around speaking about identities speaking about race, there's also sort of differences in cultural beliefs around you know, respecting people's sexual orientation and gender identity there there there are nuances and complexities and how d i and inclusion as a as a practice looks like in and in diverse kinds. entries and then when we come to the US the d i context and di framework is really informed by the our legacy of racism, sexism, homophobia, transphobia, all of these things that are really specific to how they've shown up and materialize in the US, right. And so depending on what is the historical legacy of exclusion, and various, you know, cities or counties, it might look different. Also, depending on how diverse the population is, what sort of practices what's the culture, how we sort of measure culture and inclusion, it also will will prompt different sorts of activities and di initiatives, whether it's sort of diverse recruiting efforts, again, employee resource groups and belonging efforts celebrating diversity and creating awareness, because that's what we want, we want to celebrate each other's culture, we want to sort of embrace identity, embrace our differences, so that we can innovate so that we can take care of better care of each other. And so that we can really practice sort of this, this oneness as a as a humanity, where, where we see beyond our differences, but before we see beyond, we have to, we have to actually see how we are different and how we might help some folks might be excluded from the table. And so the DI practice is early aimed to to ensure that everybody has a seat at the table and a voice to be heard.

The United States is known as the melting pot of the world. There's everything here. Everyone from all over the world, different colors, races at, oh, my goodness, there's, there's so many different things, we actually have a graphic that shows exactly what diversity is, and everything that is involved in diversity. Albert, tell us about why is it important in terms of the hiring process, and employment practice for first for foreign nurses to make sure that they're hired fair, transparent, free of discrimination on all of those levels that we just saw that graphic. Sorry about that. So when you think about hiring practices, or recruiting practices, I managed to healthcare professional staffing for a man that goes into our different clients, we're focused on creating a diverse pool of people is important, because you want your organization you want your recruiting practices to look like the communities in the society that people are pulled from, it creates a better connection, do you think about a nurse, right? A nurse that is, let's say in Alabama, right, and that nurse has a patient and and if that nurse doesn't know, anything in this, this is just wild to think about anything about biases, anything about microaggressions anything that might create tension between him or her, or that person. And that patient is quite possible that there could be tension there, right.

So when you're when you're hiring, or when you're when you're recruiting candidates for, for, for your staffing efforts, you want to think in terms of am I creating a pool of people to pull from and present to our clients or present to the panel of folks that would be considering the hiring, you want to make sure that that you have created a diverse slate, so that you eventually end up with a community of people inside your organization that looks like the folks that are in the, in the marketplace community. So it's and it also considers fairness it can it considers transparency it when you hire with a diverse lens, you're actually doing some very important things, you're eliminating labels, right? If you see a person that person is that person is more than what you see. Right? You want to you want to recognize the skill set that they have, you want to recognize the value that they can bring to the organization, the level of performance that they can bring into the organization that could really create a competitive advantage for your, for your company. So when you're, you're hiring, you're bringing people in, you're creating this, this this culture where everyone can, can actually work together and socialize together. So there's two important things here. You want your organization to look like the community that you're pulling people from, and you want to create relationships with those folks. so that so that they can that so that they can all bring their whole selves to work and be productive and help to drive the business of the organization. So I'll stop there.

Yeah. Oh, we're actually getting a question here in the chat from Louise, who is asking it. Oh, we get this all the time. Is there an age limit to work in the United States? Oh, we have Christian back here. We'll get to you in just a moment. Gerry, is there an age limit? And how does that work? Yes, there are age limits in the US thankfully, we have employment laws that help protect from exploitative child labor. And so there isn't an age limit. While while it is important to recognize that the way in which we care about people in our health care settings, our nurses our backbones, right, because they're able to interact directly with diverse groups, diverse patients who have different needs. And so as we think about, when is the right time to sort of at what age do you want to sort of start on your journey to come to the US, I think any age is, is any ages, as long as you're still around and have a heartbeat and living you can make a difference here. So definitely welcome nurses who are who are interested in working in the US to do the research and to and to come on, because this is a welcoming place for everyone.

So the only age limitation is that you cannot be too young. There's no such thing as too old. Okay. It's like against the law, gender also cannot be you cannot hire based on that either. So those are those are systems that are put into place in general in the United States that try to stay away from that, that discrimination there. Christian, we have you back. Welcome back. Let's get to tell us about your journey to the United States. Why did you decide to come to the United States and be a nurse? He's doing the freeze. I liked that a lot. Well, I tell you what, we have some people in the chat saying hello, Mommy is saying hello from Ghana. We have Terry who is saying hello from Alabama. My goodness, you were just mentioning Alabama. And there it is. Let's go back to what you were saying earlier Albert's about making sure that nurses feel like they have a place in the workforce in their health care facility. From a nurses point of view. What do you see hospitals doing to make sure that the nurses are emigrate integrated into the workplace culture? And how do they usually work in those trainings and those those different systems that the hospitals have set up to integrate?

You know, I was just in a meeting yesterday with Kaiser Permanente. And their workforce, their nurses are extremely important to them. They're, they're looking at every every possible perspective that a person could take, or they're considering it as, as their main, I don't use the word maintaining managing their, their their workforce, but you said something, one of the most critical things that a hospital system or a hospital can do is train. And we spent a lot of time talking about training yesterday, because they're very interested in what we're doing as it relates to helping them to diversify their workforce as we place folks within their organizations. We spend a little time talking about that. And, and, and what's what really caught my attention was, that is something that is critically important to them. And that is the training and the awareness that we're that we're attempting to sort of breed in our staffing. Before folks go into our clients, we want to make sure they've been through certain classes and training. And Gerry and I have been talking about that as well. Trying to connect the dots between what he's doing internally what I'm doing externally and making sure that we're that that we're sort of doing the same thing, right. So what what nurses need In my opinion is not just what they get from the textbooks and what they get from, from, from their, from their education regarding whatever their nursing and specialties are. But I think this, this, this relationship piece, with the, with their, with their peers at work, and with the patience and understanding how to communicate, right?

Communication is extremely important because there are some pretty tough conversations that can take place, if you have a person that's sick sitting, sitting in the sitting in, in the, in the, in the patient room, and then how to care for that person, right? Patient Care is extremely important and, and every hospital is extremely concerned about that how you treat that person. You and it's regardless of, of, of the gender, regardless of race, regardless of the ethnicity. Here's the thing, here's the bottom line for everybody that comes into a hospital, everybody is human, everybody is a person, and we have to be able to treat those people. Like they're like they're a person like they're your mother like they're your father. So I think relationships, communication, dei training, understanding the sensitivity, what that person is feeling like as they as they come in to the hospital, because coming into the hospital, first of all, is extremely unnerving. Right, especially if you're sick. So then that kind of moves up the the Richter on that, on that communication on that on that relationship. So when, when you think about what what I'm promoting in the in the marketplace, it is about how you treat human beings, it is how you perceive that human being in his watch, this is also how you receive that person. So when I when I really do a real granular look at what Gerry and I do, it is it is about relationships, it is about communication, and how well we effectively do that.

I've seen, I've seen I've seen the worst, and probably some of the best outcomes as it relates to these interpersonal relationships that you create. In Dei, I've seen people feel like they're outed, right, as Gerry used a technical term, you're considered the other, right? And why would you want someone to feel like the other? Right? When we're all in the human race together? We're, we're not measured by this by the color of our skin. Right. But, and I'll quote someone but but as the content of your character. So when we think in terms of what we're trying to drive, right with nurses, nurses are on the front line, nurses have to have a sensitivity to, to, to people. And when you think about the LGBTQ plus, folks, those folks have been in some cases, excommunicated, simply because of their choice. And everybody makes choices, everyone, right, and and, and if it's a choice that's going to create an out for you, then that's a shame, because what they've chosen in their life, right, is what makes them comfortable. And it doesn't matter, because they're still a human being and they need to be treated as such. So again, I can run on and on and on.

Absolutely, thank you so much for that. And I love that you quoted Martin Luther King there. You know, my four children will not be judged by the color of their skin, but the content of their character. And that is so important. It doesn't matter in the United States. If you're richer, older, younger, poor, able disabled, gay, straight, you can make it, you can make it in this country, because we do have the system set up just for you. I want to take a look at the kinetic suicide Success Path. Let's get an idea of the journey that nurses do have when coming to the United States. So the first thing you're going to do is pass that NCLEX exam, then you're going to apply to Connetics USA will be working with one of our recruiters who are going to be supporting you through your interview will also then get you placed with a wonderful health care facility here in the United States. Then comes your immigration. We will help support you and your family through the entire immigration process, we're talking green cards, EB three permanent residency, green cards for you and your family. And our team is there to support you. From there, we're going to help you with the onboarding process, getting you ready to come to the United States, everything that you need in order to be successful. And once you arrive, you're going to get training, clinical training, and all of what we're talking about today, D, I, diversity, equity, and inclusion is part of that training, because it is so important. And of course, if you want to be a nurse in the United States, and go through that journey that I just showed you, and more, please apply on our website Connetics usa.com, forward slash apply, Let's achieve your American dream. I want to get back to Gerry here. You know, in what ways can employees play an active role in diversity, equity and inclusion?

Yeah, absolutely. You know, I think that we often consider di as these big large initiatives that are LED top down by leaders or by the organization. But it could also be at the individual level, ensuring that someone feels welcomed and connected and affirmed here. I think about are, you can sort of walk down memory lane for me and go back to you know, 13 year old, your younger self, when you're sort of entering, maybe school for the first time or a cafeteria for the first time, and just wanting to belong, right and hoping that someone will invite you to sit at the table with them, to have lunch to share a cup of coffee. And and that's what colleagues can do at the individual level is, is just extending a hand and then offering a connection opportunity to welcome someone that already feels perhaps, like they're the only one or perhaps still navigating and wanting to understand the culture and wanting to belong. And so from, from an employee level, that's what we can do is just, you know, ask, ask someone about them learn about their story. As As humans, we want to tell our story. And the three things that that matter most is, do you hear me? Do you see me? And does what I say matter?

And what about, yeah, why is it important for nurses to bring up diversity, equity inclusion in the workplace, to their peers to speak up? Because a lot of nurses all over the world is cultural, right? That that you don't speak up? You don't speak your mind? You don't give out red flags? How what why is that important? And what's the best way to deal with that, Gerry? Well, think about all it took to get here, right? What, what you had to, to do, you just outlined our beautiful streamlined process, which Amon healthcare is so fantastic because they they really hold your hand through it, right? They they sort of, from from everything from application to helping you integrate and become familiar with the culture in the in the customs here, there's a there's a long process but a why it's important is because we want we want folks to stay we want to bring like you mentioned earlier the US is a diverse melting pot we recognize and our heart and our spirit of the country is is centered around opportunity and and ensuring that people have access to to achieve their dreams, whatever that may be.

And, and when folks come to the US right, it can be sometimes turbulent we have to be honest and and it can feel isolating sometimes and it can feel lonely especially if you're in your place perhaps in a in a hospital setting in a county in a city in a state where where there's not folks that look like you let alone speak your language or let alone sort of share your your beliefs and practices and so why it's important for colleagues and for organizations to really foster a sense of connection is because we want people to thrive and feel like they can see themselves succeeding there for your nurse for the nurses that come to the US wanting to provide the best care possible wanting to see themselves succeed within the organization and stay and bring their families and so but in order to do that, we have to feel happy and content and like we can thrive there and that really comes down to the to the our personal connections and relationships with with one another not just the work right our patients is one or one thing and nurses are so fantastic because they they really provide such great care and, and but but they're also human right so so it's important because we want folks to stay. We want folks to be happy and we want folks to succeed.

If you said it so well, Albert, let's say I'm gonna give a an example here, okay? Just just an example. So let's say we have an international nurse who is working in a US healthcare facility, and they feel like they are being discriminated against. Many nurses may not say a word, they're scared about their job, they're scared about oh, my gosh, everybody's gonna be against me. I'm that person. That's, you know, whistle blowing. Albert, what is the best way to raise that red flag? Who do you go to? What do you say? How do you make sure that you do not continue to become a victim of this? You know, that's a that's a very, very good question you ask Gerry about, you know, peers in the organization. And, and he gave us a very good answer. And one of the things that I would suggest to nurses who are coming over, there's a thing called ally ship, right? You need to create your allies within the organization that you're going to, and they should be reaching out to you as well. Ally ship is extremely powerful. Right? You you create, there's, there's the mentor, Ally, there's the you know, peer ally. And, you know, the best thing for this person to do if they're feeling that way, right is to say something, right, you say something to you ally, you say something to your HR representative, because it's, if you don't say anything, that's really the worst thing to do.

Because saying something is like it not saying something is like condoning it, right. And then people feel the freedom to continue to treat you the way that they want to treat you. Right, there's a there's an old saying, and it's slightly off a little bit, you know, you want to treat somebody like you want to be treated and, and in Dei, that's not true, you want to treat that person like they want to be treated, right, because everybody literally has a way that they want to be treated. If you're coming from another country, you're from a different culture, there's, there's different customs, there are things that that person literally is accustomed to, and we want to recognize that. So if a person is uncomfortable in their in their work setting, they really should talk to their HR representative, but they should also have allies in the organization who they can reach out to who they can talk to. And maybe sometimes it's just a custom a different in a difference in custom and no one really means any harm. There's a certain there's, there's there's, you know, a thing called microaggressions. And sometime microaggressions are unintentional. Right. And, and, and that person doesn't mean anything, but what they're saying they're just doing something that is normal to them, but not to the person that's being offended or being made to feel uncomfortable. So I would really lean on that when they come into the country, they should, they should truly try and reach out and create allies. So they have a person they have a circle of friends that that they can connect with as extremely important.

In the workplace. I think Gerry gave some astronomical number 80,000 Did you say any 1000 hours of time that a person spends at work, and to spend that amount of time at work is is is huge. And, and to try and treat that like as a not a part of your life, it would be crazy. So as knowing that as a huge part of your life, you need to have folks that you can reach out to while you're at work and and in this case for underrepresented members or folks who are visiting our country or just moving into our country. Having a friend having an ally within the organization is extremely important. So that's what I would suggest. What do you do report these things? Is it kept confidential or does everybody find out Gerry? Absolutely. It's confidential. Um, you know, depending on which organization you work for, there's there's different systems and mechanisms for reporting potential or perceived exclusion or discrimination. Right. I think the wonderful thing about ame and healthcare is that we also have our clinical managers that can help you sort of talk through some of these things before you perhaps you're you're ready to formally report any sort of grievance within your your organization because I can understand how scary that might be.

Especially, you know, if if you want to really be welcomed and affirmed by by the hospital you work at So there's several resources you can You can tap into, I think another thing to consider is, is how we are perceiving interactions. Right? Whether they're the intention is, is to be exclusionary or not. And when when we are hoping to, you know, address a potential issue, what what, considering what, what is the resolution here? Is it perhaps to be more included to have training and education to help folks be more sort of sensitive and conscientious of different beliefs and customs and, and how our words have weighed and that they might hurt? Or, or what would you like to sort of be the resolution, I think that's an important thing to consider. Because we often don't think about that. And, and oftentimes people are hoping that through through telling someone that things will immediately change. And oftentimes that that happens, especially if the hospital you work for has the resources and the sort of di education programs and whatnot, but often it doesn't. So I know that it can be a scary path to navigate. But luckily, there's there's resources you can tap, whether it's with an ame and healthcare or or within the hospital setting you workout.

Albert, you mentioned allies, making friends, having people that you can speak to what if you are a nurse, and how like, you want to support others, people are coming to you and sharing this information. How as a leader, can you support the your colleagues, your nurses that are maybe dealing with that and come to you and say, Hey, I need your help? Yeah, as a as a leader? You know, that's, that's a good question. So and I say this very carefully, that everybody is not a leader. So let me start there. There, there are folks who manage systems Well, or they manage processes and, and sometimes in organizations, they do that really well, then they get promoted to a leader. Well, that that doesn't necessarily mean you're a leader. A leader needs to have the ability to influence inspire, motivate, give purpose, and meaning. Right, and that's as as a leader, when you're talking to your, to your associates, the folks that work with you that are the folks that work around you. You want to be very, you know, conscious of that, right? So how you treat a person? Yeah, words are important words can, words can help a person thrive or words can kill. So as you're, as you're communicating with, with folks within your organization, and understanding that we're becoming more diverse, you have to be very careful about how you're having these communications.

And, and keep in mind that your words mean, some may mean something to people, right? So you have to be conscious about that the words that you speak, the labels that you put on people, the labels that you recognize, and then and here's, here's, here's what's important, you have to be able to get beyond what you see. Right? If you see my dark skin, you have to be able to get beyond the dark skin, and then communicate with the person that's that's that's in me or who I represent. And it's it takes a special skill set in order to really get there to really understand that you're that you're relating with this person, and that this person literally is probably hinging on every word that you say. So leaders who have that quality are folks who can really increase retention, increase innovation, increase this person's ability to bring their whole self to work, and, and we have to be aware of that. Right? So giving that kind of awareness within the organization. Again, I go back to training, there's you can never do enough training, in communication, in change management, helping people to understand that as the organization changes, what are you doing to help to help move with that change? And are you communicating those things that represent the your organization?

Well, especially if that's an organization that's really driving diversity, equity, inclusion, justice and advocacy? Are you are you portraying that so this, this communication with with the folks with within the organization and in my opinion, really becomes one of the top three things that that an organization can do to help to help their employees thrive because When you think about an organization within a society is we want that organization to thrive, we want our, our, our communities and our and our, in the folks within the community to thrive. So I really believe that in in light of that we have to take this leadership role, more and more important, more than just thinking that you're demanding people to do things, you have to really rely on more influence more about giving purpose and meaning to what that person is doing at work, and then help them bring their whole self to work. We're getting a few questions here, in the chat about this topic. Marlon is asking, Does Amen healthcare stay connected with the direct hire nurses, after their deployment in their respected hospitals? What activities do you organize for them. So for direct hire Connetics USA as part of AMN healthcare, we actually have a circle of support. And what this is, is that once you arrive in the United States, you're not alone. You are not alone, we stay with you for at least six months. And then so many of our nurses become part of our Angel Network, to help other nurses who are arriving, we put you together with buddies, perhaps from your same country and in your same healthcare facility to help you make friends to help you get integrated. We also have, of course, our clinical transitional modules, we have community liaisons that we put you together with people that have been working there, people that are part of that community, so that they can also show you the different resources that you can have within that city, we also do regular check ins, we put you together with different organizations within your city that you can also be a part of that can make you feel more connected with everyone else. So we do not leave you alone.

Okay, you are completely supported from the beginning, all the way through your entire journey here. And Merrill is not Merlin is now giving us a heart. So that's wonderful. And now whenever it comes to circles of support, like we just showed Gerry, what do you think, are the most important pieces of that, that nurses should really, really take advantage of when they arrive? Sure, um, you know, I think about our hierarchy of needs as humans, right. And while the great parts around DIR in terms of like celebration of cultural holidays, and things like that are fantastic. There are more simpler, simpler and more simple and immediate concerns that the nurses might have, especially if you're coming with your family or your your, you know, wanting to become sort of familiarized with the areas, everything from, you know, what's a good childcare facility, you know, where can we find restaurants or, you know, supermarkets that have the sort of cultural foods that we are accustomed to, and really love. So I think the best sort of support networks are folks who have been here who share perhaps your your, your background, your experience as coming in as an international nurse that you could ask for support. Whether it's those employee resource groups, our clinical managers and the Connetics USA team who have fantastic resources, or or folks in your, in the local community, right, we have to sort of think about the the microcosms in the organization is one thing, and then you zoom out a little bit, and there might be sort of a cultural center that you can align to that or, you know, a religious or belief center that that aligns with your your values and, and your ideas around the metaphysical.

And so you might have those areas of support as well, because it's one thing to feel supported at work. But it's an also another thing to feel supported in your community where you live, where your kids go to school. So So sort of tapping those networks of folks who have been here who have shared a sort of a similar experience of of becoming an international nurse, I think are your first point of contact for sure. So those buddies, I would say those buddies are our ones. We love the buddies and I tell you what, we get photos all the time from our nurses, and they are all you were talking about the cafeteria table. They're all sitting at cafeteria tables, enjoying conversations enjoying their life, they all have so much in common. And Albert just really quickly we're kind of wrapping up here, but we were talking about how Connetics can help support nurses in order to get them settled. out here and how nurses can support other nurses. How do you see the hospitals collaborating with the local communities when it comes to diversity, equity and inclusion?

Well, again, I, I recently started having meetings with our, with our clients. I know that most of our clients, really all of them, they all have different consortiums, that they, where they meet and greet and talk about, you know, what are this social determinants of health that, that we can help with within the communities? What are the disparities that we need to be focused on? How do we improve health equity. So these, these, these hospitals aren't working independent, independent of one another, they come together their share ideas, and they think together about how they can be more effective in their efforts to, to help the folks that are in the communities where they live. And these are not just, you know, small meetings, right?

There's one organization that has 70 hospital systems in it, where they all come together, and they share ideas, and they create best practices, because this is not something that can be done, you know, in a corner, or privately the the issues that we face, the issues that, you know, even international nurses face as they come into, come into the communities. They're, they're literally addressed in these in these consortiums, where we're where the hospital systems are thinking together about how do we solve these problems? And, and, and even, you know, even some of the things that that are, that are still considered blue sky issues that wow, this is so big, how do we handle it? You know, it's, it's, it's more about how do we, you know, take bites out of the apple, in order to make folks feel comfortable in order to make sure that people are being cared for? That we're meeting people where they are in their communities, and helping to address those issues. So that's one of the things that I know, hospital systems and hospitals are doing, they they have these consortiums, they come together, they share ideas, and they really learn from and they really learn from one another, that diversity, learning from one another, and then the world becomes a better place all all together. Gerry, I want to get to some final advice here. What is your advice for international nurses who are working in the United States and maybe dealing with some diversity inclusion issues? Or for nurses also, who are planning to immigrate to the United States? And maybe you're fearful of dealing with that whenever they start working here? What is your advice?

Absolutely. First and foremost, I would say that, if you yourself are navigating perhaps a D AI issue in your organization, the chances are that you're not the only one. Okay? So, so rest assured, and that that sort of ease your fear that others are experiencing likely what you are, and if that's the case, then then it becomes a sort of a larger, a larger problem that that hospitals want to resolve, right? They they've invested resources, and training and hiring, that they want you to be happy, and they want you to succeed there. Right? And so my advice would be to speak up, if you if you see something, say something, right. And, and you might feel hesitant to because you might think that Well, you know, is this is this am I am I miss perceiving something, is this something that's only happening to me, but it may not be and so while our, our, our journey sometimes includes, you know, paths that that have barriers, and that are rocky, if you think about our purpose, and what I love so much about nurses is that they're so altruistic and giving of themselves to others and sort of have this servant leadership mentality to really provide care for others. And so keeping with that same spirit and that same sort of, you know, I care what why do you get into the field to care for others to support others? The same thing with di we're all here to make the world a little bit better to leave it better than we found it right. So by you sharing and speaking up, for you're creating the space for others who come after you to enter the facility to enter the hospital to without I'm experiencing those same di issues that you may have as well. So, so speak up, find your your allies and your resources. And and don't be afraid because the hospitals want you there. They want you to succeed, and they want to know what you're feeling and what you're thinking to they can resolve it.

Albert, do you have anything else to add on that wonderful piece of final advice for our international nurses? I think the thing that I would want this the international nurses to leave with is to know that you have dei folks here who are who are here to support it, that are really cultivating the ground, to make sure that the life that you spend here and others who are underrepresented members, or maybe marginalized, have a place and can truly come in and bring their whole self to work. A message that I like to give folks is we know that diversity happens, it just exists. But inclusion is intentional. And we are true. And we are truly thinking about how to be more intentional and make and helping folks feel like they're included. And so with that in mind, we want you to come in and know that you feel welcomed, know that you that you're valued. And we want and we want you to know that you're respected. And I want to repeat something Gerry said and that is if you see something, say something, and know that you will be supported. have that confidence. And I'm saying that not lightly. You have to come in and there's a there's a saying in my church, it says know that you know that, you know, you have to really know and believe that you have supporters and people that believe in you, and that want to see you succeed. And that is what and that is our mission, to make sure that everybody that comes into the workplace into the workforce, that they have an opportunity to exceed that they have an opportunity to move up in the organization or do whatever their mission is in life. And so we want to make sure that you are comfortable doing that. And that you can, again, bring your whole self to work.

Thank you so much, Albert and Gerry, what an amazing conversation we've had today. Thank you so much for joining us. We really appreciate it. Of course, if you want to apply to become a nurse in the United States ConneticsUSA.com/apply and start your American dream. Thank you again to our panelists, Gerry and Albert. We'll definitely have you back on the show sometime soon. And we'll try to get Christian back as well on a show in the future. We do have our future show schedule of all of the shows that we have coming up here here are onwards and upwards. Next week we'll be speaking about career progression, how to progress in your career. We'll also have some nurses speaking about some examples of how they progressed when they arrived in the United States and throughout their careers. I did see some questions about the visa bulletin. We will have our partner immigration lawyers live on August the 11th. For a Q&A, they'll be taking your questions live. So please be sure to tune in on August the 18th Connetics career day like speed dating for a job. We have several clients that are going to be joining the show telling you about their facility and then you can make a decision on where you want to be and who you want to work with August the 25th. Stateside, we had several requests to focus on the north eastern part of the United States and jobs up in the Northeast.

So we listened and here it is October or I'm sorry, August the 25th and August the eighth our love for a talk show you never want to miss it. We'll be speaking clinical about working alongside precept tours. Don't miss the Connetics College every Monday. These are free classes for you to help you pass your NCLEX exam, your English exams, the OET the PTE the IELTS, we do a free class for you. Every Monday our wonderful partners, Aspire RN Swoosh Niner and IPass here to help you and answer your questions as well to help you be successful pass those exams and start your journey here in the United States. Thank you so much for joining us again. We'll see you next week. And like we always say, onwards and upwards. Take care everyone bye