Rush among top U.S. hospitals for equal treatment of LGBT patients, family members and employees

CHICAGO — For the third consecutive year, Rush University Medical Center has been named a Leader in LGBT Healthcare Equality in the Healthcare Equality Index ( HEI ) report, an annual survey of U.S. hospitals regarding treatment of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender ( LGBT ) patients and their families and hospital employees.

Rush was one of only 27 survey respondents in the country and one of only two in Illinois to meet all of the survey's main criteria. The survey respondents represented 375 health care facilities nationwide.

The HEI survey is administered annually by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, the country's largest LGBT civil rights organization. The survey evaluated hospitals on the basis of four key policy areas: visitation policies, cultural competency training and patient and employment non-discrimination policies. Rush received a perfect score in all of the evaluation categories.

"At Rush, we are committed not only to providing the excellence in clinical service for which Rush is nationally known, we also are committed to providing these services in a manner that understands, accepts and affirms the individual circumstances of each patient. We recognize that we need to understand and work with our patients as unique individuals in order to provide them with the very best care," says Dr. Larry Goodman, Rush CEO.

"Being included among the Human Rights Campaign Foundation's Leaders in LGBT Healthcare Equality for the third consecutive year is an important affirmation of this effort," Goodman says, "and one we are proud and grateful to receive."

The Healthcare Equality Index 2011 is available online in PDF format atwww.hrc.org/hei.