Date of Conferral
5-5-2025
Date of Award
May 2025
Degree
Doctor of Healthcare Administration (D.H.A.)
School
Health Services
Advisor
Dr. Nicole Mcguire
Abstract
Rural hospital health systems in the United States provide different services to rural communities, such as serving vulnerable populations, providing better access to healthcare, and contributing to the overall health of the community. Ninety percent of nonprofit CEOs are White, and 90% of nonprofit board members are White. This integrative review aimed to explore evidence of strategies to implement, promote, and increase DEI representation among C-suite executives in rural health systems. Twenty-five articles published between 2018 and 2024 were selected based on words used across the databases which included rural health*, hospital*, diversity*, and equity*. Literature containing the inclusion criteria was critically appraised using the Johns Hopkins Nursing Evidence-Based Practice Model (JHNEBP) and Research Evidence Appraisal form. The study resulted in four major themes and 12 subthemes to align with the main themes. The study then categorized them to identify the connection between articles related to DEI among executive leaders in rural health systems and support cognitive diversity theory (CDT). The four key themes were organizational culture, minority leadership representation, diversity management, and leadership inclusion training. CDT supports the need for inclusion and diversity management to provide different approaches to increase minority representation. This study’s findings have implications for social change in healthcare organization’s C-suite leadership positions and raise awareness of the need to have C-suite executive leaders reflect the community the organization serves.
Recommended Citation
Gulley, Veaunka, "Increasing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Among C-Suite Executives in Non-Profit Rural Hospitals" (2025). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 17714.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/17714
