Health Equity Portfolio Common Terms

Diversity: Is the full spectrum and intersectionality of identities including but not limited to national origin, language, race, color, disability, ethnicity, sex, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, veteran status, neurodiversity, lived experiences, geographic location, and family structure.

Equity: Means consistent, fair, and just treatment and outcomes for all persons in the workplace at personal, interpersonal, cultural, and systemic levels.

Health Equity: The intentional effort to ensure that everyone experiences a fair opportunity to achieve the highest level of health without barriers to access and care. Health equity can be achieved through ongoing focused societal efforts to address and eliminate inequalities and injustices that lead to health disparities.  

Inclusion: Involvement, belonging, respect, and connection; feeling valued and included across diverse groups; regularly using a diverse group of staff in decision-making; recognizing and understanding our differences as having worth, dignity, and value in the workplace. Creates a culture where diverse employees feel valued, respected, and encouraged to fully participate, are able to be their authentic selves in the workplace and feel a sense of belonging.

Social Determinants of Health (SDOH): The conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life.