Editor's Note

This article is brought to you by Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System.

I feel fortunate and blessed to have worked nearly half of my 20-year career for the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, an organization with a mission thats committed to justice and reverence for all of life.

Those core values drive progress in diversity and inclusion. Having grown up as a brown girl (how I affectionately describe myself), I know what it feels like to be denied opportunity because of the color of my skin and/or for being a female. And racial profiling by the police? Ive had that experience, too.

And its why Ive often had conversations with my 15-year-old son in which we rehearse what he should say and do if he is ever stopped by the police. Please understand I support our police department, as well as all people working in public service. I believe in them. But our (my) reality is we must prepare and teach our young, brown children about a world where the worst is often assumed about them through conscious or unconscious bias.

Here at the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System, Ive had more experiences of feeling valued than not valued. In fact, Im often inspired by the extraordinary care administered by our entire team, regardless of a patients race, gender, religious belief, or socioeconomic status, which are all facets of diversity and inclusion. Ive been moved by our teams stirring acts of kindness and compassion.

Those moments are the product and result of a very real and intentional commitment to justice and reverence for all of life.

Our health system was founded more than a century ago by Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Sisters, women who arrived in Louisiana with a mission to provide essential healthcare to a population that often went without.

The Sisters were trailblazers, creating a new ministry at a time when women werent at the forefront of leadership. They were courageous and passionate enough to travel all the way from Europe to provide care, to overcome being told no, and being denied necessary resources to start their work.

But they endured and successfully began their healing ministry in Monroe.

Today, our health system employs 18,000 team members in Louisiana and Mississippi.

This organizations history and core values resonate with me. This ministry possesses the self-awareness to know where were supposed to be just yet, and so remains committed a never-ending journey creating an inclusive culture.

Our health system often pursues healthcare commitments to which other organizations may hesitate, including providing vital access to mental and behavioral services within our communities, expanding our commitment to the elderly through our Senior Services, and investing in the future of our state with our Childrens Health network.

We treat our patients with dignity and respect and its why people from all walks of life know when they come to us theyll receive the highest quality care at every touch point of their experience.

Were strengthening a workplace culture in which our team members can thrive, and feel connected to their work. That is our goal. That is my personal passion and purpose. Throughout my career here Ive felt my fit, from the time I was an entry-level employee, to a single working mom recognized for my potential to lead, to the executive I am today. Encouraging each persons potential and growth is what our ministry does. We work hard to constantly refine and build our positive cultural behaviors which ensures we are always assessing and challenging ourselves to be empathetic with one another. And that we live up to our mission which closes with, We are, with Gods help, a healing and spiritual presence to each other and to the communities we are privileged to serve.

Just recently, I was sharing some of my personal experiences about exclusion and racism with a fellow team member, including those talks with my teenage son to ensure he has safe encounters with police. Afterwards, she texted me and said, I dont always understand what youre going through, but I certainly want to learn, I want us to learn together.

That meant the world to me. Thats who we are as a ministry.

Read more:

When diversity and inclusion are part of the mission - The Advocate