MH005_Workplace_Discrimination_in_Healthcare_Legal_and_Ethical_Requirements_b_breunig

Workplace Discrimination in Healthcare Bethany Breunig Masters in Nursing-Nurse Executive, Walden University MH005: Leadership, Ethics and Law Dr. Paula Stechschulte February 24, 2024

Legal Terms U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC): provides enforcement of federal laws that make discriminating against an employee or applicant illegal because of their sex, color, race, religion, national origin, age, or disability (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, n.d). Employment Discrimination: an applicant or staff member is treated negatively by an employer due to sex, race, religion, color, sexual orientation, gender, national origin, disability or status as a protected veteran (Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, 2016). Disparate treatment: an applicant or staff member is treated negatively by an employer than others in similarly positions, and it is due to the person’s race, sex, religion, color, sexual orientation, national origin, gender identity, disability, or status as a protected veteran (Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, 2016). Disparate impact: the appearance that policies or practices look fair and are practical but negatively affect staff members of a particular sex, race or ethnic group, individuals with disabilities, or other protected groups (Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, 2016).

EEOC Findings: Discrimination Types and Charge Statistics Age Disability Equal Pay/Compensation Genetic Information Harassment National Origin Pregnancy Race/Color Religion Retaliation Sex Sexual Harassment Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity FY 2012 FY 2013 FY 2014 FY 2015 FY 2016 FY 2017 FY 2018 FY 2019 FY 2020 FY 2021 FY 2022* Total Charges 99,412 93,727 88,778 89,385 91,503 84,254 76,418 72,675 67,448 61,331 73,485 Race 33,512 33,068 31,073 31,027 32,309 28,528 24,600 23,976 22,064 20,908 20,992 33.7% 35.3% 35.0% 34.7% 35.3% 33.9% 32.2% 33.0% 32.7% 34.1% 28.6% Sex 30,356 27,687 26,027 26,396 26,934 25,605 24,655 23,532 21,398 18,762 19,805 30.5% 29.5% 29.3% 29.5% 29.4% 30.4% 32.3% 32.4% 31.7% 30.6% 27.0% National Origin 10,883 10,642 9,579 9,438 9,840 8,299 7,106 7,009 6,377 6,213 5,500 10.9% 11.4% 10.8% 10.6% 10.8% 9.8% 9.3% 9.6% 9.5% 10.1% 7.5% Religion 3,811 3,721 3,549 3,502 3,825 3,436 2,859 2,725 2,404 2,111 13,814 3.8% 4.0% 4.0% 3.9% 4.2% 4.1% 3.7% 3.7% 3.6% 3.4% 18.8% Color 2,662 3,146 2,756 2,833 3,102 3,240 3,166 3,415 3,562 3,516 4,088 2.7% 3.4% 3.1% 3.2% 3.4% 3.8% 4.1% 4.7% 5.3% 5.7% 5.6% Retaliati on - All Statutes 37,836 38,539 37,955 39,757 42,018 41,097 39,469 39,110 37,632 34,332 37,898 38.1% 41.1% 42.8% 44.5% 45.9% 48.8% 51.6% 53.8% 55.8% 56.0% 51.6% Retaliati on - Title VII only 31,208 31,478 30,771 31,893 33,082 32,023 30,556 30,117 27,997 25,121 28,462 31.4% 33.6% 34.7% 35.7% 36.2% 38.0% 40.0% 41.4% 41.5% 41.0% 38.7% Age 22,857 21,396 20,588 20,144 20,857 18,376 16,911 15,573 14,183 12,965 11,500 23.0% 22.8% 23.2% 22.5% 22.8% 21.8% 22.1% 21.4% 21% 21.1% 15.6% Disability 26,379 25,957 25,369 26,968 28,073 26,838 24,605 24,238 24,324 22,843 25,004 26.5% 27.7% 28.6% 30.2% 30.7% 31.9% 32.2% 33.4% 36.1% 37.2% 34.0% Equal Pay Act 1,082 1,019 938 973 1,075 996 1,066 1,117 980 885 955 1.1% 1.1% 1.1% 1.1% 1.2% 1.2% 1.4% 1.5% 1.5% 1.4% 1.3% GINA 280 333 333 257 238 206 220 209 440 242 444 0.3% 0.4% 0.4% 0.3% 0.3% 0.2% 0.3% 0.3% 0.7% 0.4% 0.6% (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, n.d-b).

EEOC Findings: Implications for Healthcare Organizations Organizations need to be particularly sensitive in these areas of discrimination due to the increase in charges over the last 15 years. • Religion charges increased from 3.5% - 18.8%. • Retaliation charges increased from 32.3% - 51.6%. • Disability charges increased from 21.4% - 35%. (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, n.d-b). Manager must be knowledgeable about workplace laws and regulations and be able find and use appropriate resources to acquire and reference (Fried & Fottler, 2018).

Reporting Violations • Nurse leaders are in a position to be ethical role models for their employees (Storaker et al., 2022). • Nurses should recognize the possible influence of unconscious bias and practices conducive to discrimination and promote opportunities that inspire inclusion while eradicating disparities (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018). • The requirement to report any violations to the EEOC (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018). • The nurse executive must be accurate in their reporting and be cognizant of HIPPA laws and only provide necessary information. • The nurse executive must be impartial in their judgement and act in the best interest of the patient/organization.

Ethical Conflicts and Management Honesty vs. withholding information • ANA advocates for truth telling as being vital to building excellent nurse-patient relationships (Dubuque University School of Nursing, 2020).  Being honest to patients whether family members want information shared or not. Science vs. spirituality • The ANA nurse Code of Ethics states that nurses will respect the “a patient’s distinct differences,” including “lifestyle, religious beliefs, and their value system” (Dubuque University School of Nursing, 2020). • Some religious beliefs limit certain medical interventions and lifesaving measures (Dubuque University School of Nursing, 2020).  Having respect and empathy for the patient and their religious beliefs

Preventing Discrimination  Zero tolerance for intentional discriminatory practices (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018).  Nurses should participate in self-reflection regarding their values towards civility, mutual respect, and inclusiveness, and ensure that patient safety and quality of care is maintained (ANA, 2015).  Nurses should find and support inclusive, civility environments that promote mutual respect regarding patients, coworkers, and community members (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018).  Assessing policies to guarantee inclusiveness, civility, and mutual respect, recognizing that the abscense of said policies could lead to environments that are unable to maintain high-quality, effective, efficient, and safe health care practices (ANA, 2010).

Advocating Nurses must: • advocate for inclusive policies that endorse civility and human rights fot employees, patients, and healthcare organization individuals and the community (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018). • inspire all healthcare organizations to implement and actively preserve policies, procedures, and practices that • embody inclusiveness • promote civility and mutual respect, • have violation reporting methods • Recurrence avoidance interventions (ANA Center for Ethics and Human Rights, 2018) • work with the nurses, healthcare and social workers, clergy, and advocacy groups to develop diverse and inclusive communities that endorse, protect, and maintain high-quality, effective, competent, and safe practices (ANA, 2010).