Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access initiatives at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center focus on four pillars that ensure all staff members and service members experience a sense of belonging, and give and receive care that allows everyone to bring their ‘whole selves’ to the organization. The NICoE does this through programs and events, education, communication, and recruitment, retention, and promotion of minoritized or underserved populations.
DEIA Mission
The NICoE creates and supports a diverse, equitable, and inclusive community where our employees can bring their authentic selves to deliver innovative, patient-centered care to service members and their families.
DEIA Vision
Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion practices will be integrated into and felt by every member of the NICoE community-- leadership, healthcare providers, staff members, and patients. The NICoE will eliminate prejudice, bias, and ensure health equity for all.
Four Pillars
Programs and Events
The Programs and Events pillar ensures that voices that have been historically marginalized be amplified at the NICoE with experiential activities. The NICoE honors all Federal Observances, and staff members and service members are encouraged to share in cultural celebrations. Previous events include panel interviews and guest speakers, concerts, dance classes, cuisine from around the world, The Black History Heritage Trail at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, art exhibits, and documentary films.
DEIA Education
The Education pillar supports practitioners and staff members to create learning communities, and use DEIA principles actively and consistently to do their jobs. DEIA Education offers multiple, ongoing seminars held throughout the year and throughout the networks that create DEIA informed leadership, health care practitioners, and staff members. The NICoE Seminar Series has hosted 10 seminar opportunities in 2022, topics included Implicit Bias, Microaggressions, and the Language of Diversity. Over 100 NICoE participants learned in an in-person, small group setting to encourage psychological safety, honest conversations, and accountability.
Comprehensive Communication Strategy
The Communication pillar provides outward and inward facing messaging that we are an organization principled in DEIA. We broadcast the NICoE’s commitment to diversity through website and Intranet presence, social media content, notices of observances, and proclamations throughout NICoE.
Recruitment, Retention, and Promotion
The final pillar of DEIA initiatives at NICoE is the recruitment, retention, and promotion of minoritized individuals. Embedded in the NICoE’s framework are mentorship, innovative best-practice recruiting, and clear, equitable promotion tracks.
Below is an example of a past DEIA event at the NICoE.