Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
As America Trends Toward More Diversity, Health System Is Accommodating Unique Cultural Needs
That future is already visible in Sacramento County and neighboring Yolo County, where West Sacramento is located: by 2013 the combined population of Hispanic, black, Asian and other nonwhite residents had edged out whites. In West Sacramento, a historically working-class county across the river from the state capital, more than 2 out of 5 public schoolchildren already speak a language other than English at home. Sacramento-area hospitals, community health centers and doctor鈥檚 offices have had to adapt. They鈥檝e hired more multilingual, bicultural staff. They鈥檝e contracted with interpretation services. The medical school at the University of California, Davis, is trying to figure out how to recruit more Latino students to a profession that remains largely white and Asian. And doctors are being trained to deliver culturally appropriate care to patients of many backgrounds. (Quinton, 2/13)