June 10, 2022- Sonja Chargois, Community Engagement and EDI Coordinator at Decatur Memorial Hospital, talks about DMH’s partnership with HSHS St. Mary’s and DCLI and what her role at DMH entails.
“There are some disparities when it comes to the marginalized population in our community,” Chargois said. “Having a really hard look at what healthcare positions look like, and seeing a lot of minorities ending up in positions such as housekeeping, food and service, but we need to flip that. The equity, diversity, and inclusion piece is a brand new department with Memorial Health. after the George Floyd incident, Memorial Health quickly realized they needed to address that and really take a look at how we are serving everyone in our community, that we are providing equitable healthcare for everyone. It is kind of cool I get to be a part of this work because I know what it is like to feel racism and experience injustice. This is an opportunity for me to really work at a passion that I have, and that is that people in our community, whatever walk of life you come from we should all have access to the resources we need so we can thrive and live the lives we desire.”
The healthcare boot camp is in its’ second year but this is the first year that Decatur Memorial Hospital will be involved.
“HSHS St. Mary’s and DMH are really working on building a strong partnership,” Chargois said. “We know that in hindsight we are competitors, but when you really think about the health of a community, why would two hospitals compete when we really should be coming together to make sure our resources work for the community. I was contacted and told we are now ready to roll DMH into this piece of the healthcare boot camp, and I immediately took it to my leader. It was a no-brainer, because that is the type of work we want our health community to be involved in, creating our next healthcare individuals.”
The boot camp will begin on Monday, June 20th, and will last until Friday, June 24th. Every day will begin at 9 a.m., and end at 3 p.m.
Register HERE.
Find out more about the healthcare boot camp HERE.
Below is the full interview with Sonja Chargois, Community Engagement and EDI Coordinator.
