MADISON, Wis. – LGBT elders who choose to use health care services from Agrace can feel confident knowing the local nonprofit agency has earned SAGECare Platinum Certification for 2022. That award means at least 80 percent of Agrace’s staff have completed cultural competence training about the needs and concerns of the LGBT community.
SAGE, the country’s oldest and largest nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of LGBT older adults, reports that a lifetime of facing discrimination, harassment and even violence often leads LGBT elders to become ill at an earlier age than their straight peers. That disparity concerns Agrace, a nonprofit health care organization whose main services—hospice, supportive (palliative) care, adult daytime care and senior care—are concentrated on serving elders across southern Wisconsin.
To better serve the needs of LGBT adults seeking its services, Agrace has partnered with SAGECare—a division of SAGE that provides competency training and consulting on LGBT aging issues. More than 80 percent of Agrace’s employees have passed LGBT cultural competency training, earning SAGECare Platinum Certification for 2022.
“Agrace is committed to fostering a culture of belonging and inclusion that celebrates people’s uniqueness. We have to understand the challenges our patients and clients face so we can make meaningful, empathetic connections with them,” said Agrace Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Manager Faatima Khan. “Agrace is partnering with SAGECare to elevate our commitment to equity, and to giving the best care possible, by learning how to make each older person feel comfortable for who they are.”
Agrace provides adult day care, non-medical senior care, supportive care, hospice care and grief support to people who are aging, seriously ill, dying and grieving in southern Wisconsin. For more information about Agrace, call (608) 276-4660 or visit agrace.org.
If you would like more information about SAGECare Training visit sageusa.care,
