TRANSITIONS ROUNDTABLE CONSENSUS PAPER FOCUSES ON CULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC CONSIDERATIONS FOR VISION CARE
Participants Look to CLAS Standards in Health Care and
Identify Strategies for Better Serving Culturally Diverse Patients
WASHINGTON, D.C., June 26, 2009 – Transitions Optical, Inc. has released a consensus paper summarizing the discussions from a multicultural roundtable event, held in Washington, D.C. on April 20. Seeking to better understand how to overcome challenges to providing vision care to culturally diverse patients, the event brought together experts from the general health care sector, along with eyecare professionals with experience meeting the needs of specific demographics, for an in-depth discussion on the CLAS (Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services) standards in health care.
The resulting paper – Cultural and Linguistic Considerations for Vision Care – identifies strategies for eyecare professionals to promote cultural competency within their own practice, using the CLAS standards as a guide. The 14 CLAS standards – which are national standards developed by the Office of Minority Health to improve access to and quality of health care for minorities – are thoroughly discussed, along with strategies for implementation and examples of how they have been successfully applied by the general health care sector. While primarily directed toward health care organizations, the CLAS standards can also be used by individual eye care providers to make their practices more culturally and linguistically accessible.
During the roundtable, participants agreed that several elements of the CLAS standards make sense for the optical industry. Topics of discussion include the use of interpreter services; the importance of in-language or multilingual materials; the need for ongoing education and training for staff members, as well as students; and overall strategies for achieving cultural competency in practice. The paper also overviews the specific eye health- and communication- needs of various demographics, including Asian Americans, African Americans and Hispanics.
“Many eyecare professionals recognize the growth in their minority patient base, but are not sure what steps to take to meet the needs of these groups,” said Martha Rivera, multicultural marketing manager, Transitions. “Through the consensus paper, we are pleased to share best practices in general health care, along with advice from successful eyecare professionals, to help the reader form a plan of action to make their practice more culturally and linguistically sensitive.”
Paper authors and roundtable participants include:
CLAS Standards Experts
• Guadalupe Pacheco, M.S.W., Office of Minority Health
• Charlotte Parniawski, R.N., M.S.N., C.N.E., National Multicultural Institute
• Gayle Tang, R.N., M.S.N., Kaiser Permanente, National Diversity Department

Eyecare Professionals
• Drake McLean, Optician, Dietz-McLean Optical, San Antonio
• Madeline Romeu, O.D., West New York, N.J.
• Hector Santiago, O.D., Ph.D., Midwestern University and Arizona College of Optometry
• Vincent Young, M.D., Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia

The consensus paper can be downloaded from the Industry Professionals section of the Transitions Web site (Transitions.com), or is available by calling Transitions Customer Service at (800) 848-1506.