LGBTQ+ Inclusive Care Is a Staple of Main Line Health
Main Line Health is dedicated to inclusion and equity for its LGBTQ+ patients. That commitment has paid off with a perfect score on an index by the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ civil rights organization measuring healthcare organizations’ commitment and efforts.
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Healthcare Equality Index has named Main Line Health as one of a handful of hospital systems nationwide demonstrating the highest levels of support for their community.
“The Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Healthcare Equality Index recognition of Main Line Health as an LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equity Leader is a true testament to our commitment,” said Rosangely Cruz-Rojas, DrPH, Vice President and Chief Diversity and Equity Officer.
Main Line Health is dedicated to providing inclusive, affirming and safe care to members of the LGBTQ+ patient population. Rather than providing LGBTQ+ inclusive care at one center or location, Main Line Health strives to ensure primary and preventative services are available across its geographic footprint.
Dane Menkin, CRNP, Director of LGBTQ+ Services, is a driving force behind Main Line Health’s offerings. The family nurse practitioner cares for a panel of about 1,000 patients, about 85% of whom identify as LGBTQ+.
He and his team educate clinicians and staff on how to treat the person in front of them, said Dane. That might mean treating a person who identifies as a woman and has a prostate, for example. They need a good command of terminology and language and understand how to provide high-quality gender affirming care. The training runs five hours.
“Most services are provided in primary care settings,” Dane said. “There is no reason why a primary care clinician can’t provide this kind of care. And that is what inclusion means. Not separate, not different, not siloed off somewhere.”
Specialists, particularly in Gynecology and Behavioral Health, can access similar training, Dane said. Other training is available to nonclinical staff who answer Main Line Health telephones to ensure they know how to collect accurate demographics over the phone, such as chosen name, pronouns and gender identity.
Due to discrimination and societal stigma, people who identify as LGBTQ+ face a wide range of health disparities when it comes to disease, injuries, violence and overall health. They often avoid healthcare providers and facilities because they have experienced or expect discrimination.
Fear of discrimination can lead to an increased risk of hospitalization and other poor health outcomes such as depression and suicide. Disparities in the physical and mental health of LGBTQ+ people may also lead to higher rates of smoking, certain cancers and physical violence.
“We see higher rates of disease processes that could have been prevented because people just wouldn’t go get screened,” Dane said. “We see more expensive healthcare because it sure is more expensive to take care of somebody in an acute psychiatric hospital than it is to get them a therapist.”