L.A. Diversity Council begins the hard work of shaping a workplace that represents & welcomes all.

Since its inception in Summer 2020, the L.A. Medical Foundation Diversity Council has made great progress on its charter to foster diversity, equity and inclusion throughout the Los Angeles Medical Foundations. According to chairwoman DeEtte Montgomery, the 12-member council with representatives from each of the three medical foundations, as well as shared services, has been meeting weekly since July.

A number of initiatives and outreach activities have been implemented, including:

Confidential L.A. Diversity Support Group – Caregivers of color who are distressed or affected by workplace issues can contact a diversity council member to discuss their concerns, confidentially. The email to use in such instances is LADiversitySupport@providence.org

Caregiver Recognition – The council has recognized caregivers of color who have gone above and beyond in
heir day-to-day work. Those recognized so far include Shannon Moore of Providence Medical Institute, Maria Wiltz of St. John’s Physician Partners, and Susan Ramirez of Facey Medical Group. Implementation of an Implicit Bias tool to evaluate human resources policies for fairness and equity in hiring and employment practices.

Lunch n’ Learns for Black History Month and beyond.

A robust resource library with works by authors of color. “Our meetings are a safe space for council members to discuss some fairly sensitive issues,” Montgomery notes. With the civil unrest around the Black Lives Matter movement, the insurrection by white supremacists at the Capitol to disrupt the certification of election results, and the statistics showing how hard-hit communities of color have been by COVID-19, there have been numerous concerns to address. All these issues are touching caregivers and providers at Providence in one way or another.

“It’s been a passion and labor of love, leading this journey,” Montgomery says. “In the midst of the COVID pandemic, I like to focus on what matters and makes a difference, and the diversity council goes at the top of that list for me.”

L.A. Medical Foundations Diversity Council members:
Gerald Brown (PMI)
Dorothy Dada, M.D. (SJPP)
Sheila Harry, NP (PMA/PMI)
Ray Holsome (SJPP)
DeEtte Montgomery (PMI)
Alex Nury (Shared Services)
Grace Park (Shared Services)
Lissette Perez (PMI)
Ashley Rodriguez (Facey)
Michael Sanchez, M.D. (Facey)
Eric Slayton (SJPP)
Jessika Wallace (Facey)