The healthcare field is making headway in closing the diversity gap according to Witt/Kieffer's latest leadership diversity study, reports Becker’s Hospital Review.

In survey in 2015, 311 participants were asked about the diversity gap in the healthcare field. Of the participants, 75 percent identified themselves as CEOs or other C-suite executives and vice presidents; 55 percent identified as Caucasian, while 45 percent identified as racially or ethnically diverse individuals; and 31 percent identified as female and 69 percent identified as male.

While disparities still exist, white respondents were more likely to say diversity has improved than racially/ethnically diverse respondents (57 percent and 26 percent) and male respondents were also more likely to think diversity has improved (48 percent) than female respondents (32 percent), compared to the 2011 survey results of the same study showed that nearly twice as many participants feel that the diversity gap has begun to fade in the healthcare field.

The study also included the following results:

1. 66 percent agreed that diversity help hospitals to reach its goals
2. 71 percent said cultural differences among executives support successful decision-making.
3. 72 percent agreed that a diverse workforce enhances the equity of care.
4. Both white respondents and racially/ethnically diverse respondents agreed healthcare organizations' executive teams today are more racially diverse. However, 26 percent of white respondents and 10 percent of racially/ethnically diverse respondents agreed minority executives are well-represented today in healthcare management teams.
5. Asian respondents were most likely to disagree on the diversity of management reflecting their patient demographics (90 percent), followed by Hispanic respondents (88 percent), black respondents (77 percent) and white respondents (69 percent).
6. 83 percent of white respondents were likely to name lack of access to diverse, lack of diverse candidates to promote from within (81 percent) and lack of diverse candidates participating in the executive search process (77 percent) as the biggest barriers.
7. 85 percent of racially/ethnically diverse respondents were most likely to cite a lack of commitment by top management, lack of commitment by the board (72 percent) and individual resistance to placing diverse candidates (64 percent) as the primary barriers.
8. 83 percent of white and racially diverse survey respondents agreed promoting minorities from within, hiring minority executives for senior management jobs (73 percent), communicating the value of cultural differences (70 percent), seeking out minority candidates from professional organizations (67 percent) and seeking regular input about the organization's diversity initiatives (52 percent) could support efforts to diversify the senior management team.