Human Rights Campaign Recognizes Three Dignity Health Hospitals in Southern Nevada as LGBTQ+ Equality High Performers in 2024 Healthcare Equality Index

LAS VEGAS, June 3, 2024 — Three Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican hospitals in southern Nevada have been recognized as LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality High Performers in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s 2024 Healthcare Equality Index (HEI). All of the Dignity Health acute care hospitals in southern Nevada - Siena Hospital, San Martin Hospital, and Rose de Lima Hospital - received the distinguished recognition. 

The Healthcare Equality Index is the nation’s foremost benchmarking survey of healthcare facilities on policies and practices dedicated to the equitable treatment and inclusion of their LGBTQ+ patients, visitors and employees.

“As a mission-driven organization founded to provide care for all, providing welcoming and knowledgeable care for LGBTQ+ patients is an important priority,” said Katherine Vergos, President of St. Rose Siena Hospital and the Dignity Health Las Vegas market. “We know that LGBTQ+ people have long faced barriers to accessing health care and that health inequity persists today. This recognition from HEI is a testament to the dedication of our compassionate care teams, who are committed to helping make sure that our LGBTQ+ patients feel welcome, heard, and safe in our care sites every day.”

The HEI evaluates and scores healthcare facilities on detailed criteria falling under five central pillars:

• Non-discrimination and Staff Training;
• Patient Services and Support;
• Employee Benefits and Policies;
• Patient and Community Engagement, and
• Responsible Citizenship.

In the 2024 report, a record 1,065 healthcare facilities actively participated in the HEI 2024 survey and scoring process.  Of those participants, 384 received the top score of 100, earning the “LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader” designation. LGBTQ+ patients have historically faced significant and long standing challenges to accessing the care they need, and Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospitals are committed to providing welcoming, compassionate care for LGBTQ+ patients and their families.

As part of the HEI process, St. Rose Dominican Hospitals underwent a comprehensive review of LGBTQ+ care policies and practices within the organization. Each of the three Dignity Health hospitals in Nevada updated dozens of policies to support LGBTQ+ health care outcomes, expanded training for staff and clinicians, updated patient forms and IT processes to better capture preferred pronouns and solicit feedback from LGBTQ+ patients, and clarified wording in employee benefits to be explicitly inclusive of LGBTQ+ employees – to name just a few examples. 

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About Dignity Health – St. Rose Dominican

Nevada’s only not-for-profit, faith-based health system, Dignity Health-St. Rose Dominican Hospitals remain guided by the vision and values of the Adrian Dominican Sisters who founded Rose de Lima Hospital in Henderson in 1947. Dignity Health now operates three acute care hospitals in southern Nevada - the Siena, San Martin, and Rose de Lima Campuses. St. Rose Dominican Hospitals is a member of the Dignity Health network of nearly 10,000 physicians, 60,000 employees, 41 acute care hospitals, and more than 400 care centers, urgent and occupational care, imaging centers, and primary care clinics. Dignity Health is a part of CommonSpirit Health, a nonprofit health system committed to advancing health for all people and dedicated to serving the common good. More than 75 years after the arrival of the original seven Sisters in Henderson, the 4,000 employees of the St. Rose Dominican health system continue the Sisters’ mission of serving people in need, especially the most vulnerable. For more information, visit www.strosehospitals.org.

Dignity Health hospitals in Nevada are supported by the St. Rose Dominican Health Foundation, whose mission is to improve community health and wellness through fundraising and relationship building with caring supporters who donate or pledge to fund our work. To learn more, visit supportstrose.org or email [email protected].