visitation and healthcare decision-making rights of LGBT persons
visitation and healthcare decision-making rights of LGBT persons
Assignment 2
Please see assignment below.
Please use headings for each section. Please use references
within the last five years. APA format only. Thanks
The assignment for this week is a case study that has to do with the non-discrimination policy for
Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) patients.
President Obama issued a memorandum on April 15, 2010 directing Health and Human Services
(HHS) to craft rules that require all hospitals that receive federal Medicare and Medicaid funding
– nearly every hospital in America – to protect the visitation and healthcare decision-making
rights of LGBT persons. Additionally, the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare
Organizations (JCAHO) has announced new, fully inclusive patient non-discrimination standards
as part of their accreditation process.
Kaiser Permanente updated its Patients’ Bill of Rights to fully protect LGBT patients and their
families from discrimination. These changes, which took effect in Kaiser Permanente’s network
of 36 hospitals, make Kaiser Permanente the first large health network to have a fully inclusive
non-discrimination policy for LGBT persons. They are also the first health network to achieve
Top Performer status in the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation’s Healthcare Equality
Index (HEI). The index includes the following criteria:
1. Patient Non-Discrimination Policies
o Patients’ Bill of Rights and/or non-discrimination policy includes “sexual
orientation’
o Patients’ Bill of Rights and/or non-discrimination policy includes “gender identity
or expression” or “gender identity”
2. Visitation Policies
o Visitation policies grant same-sex couples the same visitation access as different-
sex couples and next of kin
o Visitation policies grant same-sex parents the same visitation access as different-
sex parents for their minor children
3. Cultural Competency Training and Client Services
o Provide cultural competency training addressing healthcare issues relevant to the
lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.
4. Employment Policies and Benefits
o Equal employment opportunity policy includes “sexual orientation”
o Equal employment opportunity policy includes “gender identity or expression” or
“gender identify”.
Questions to Answer in this Assignment:
1. Do you think that other criteria should be included as part of the index? If so, what
would you add?
2. How can association policies or employer policies be used to supplement legal
requirements if an organization would like to protect its employees or clients from
discrimination? Source: Human Rights Campaign.
3. In addition to answering the questions above, write a policy for your organization in
regard to non-discrimination for LGBT patients.*
Your paper should be no less than 4 pages long and contain 4 references. All nursing students are
required to submit assignment by end of Module 3. Please use the rubric below to help you
complete this Assignment.
