Goodside Health is proud to serve more than 1.1 million students through partnerships with our school partners, including in Texas, which is home to 19% of the over 60 million people of Hispanic heritage that live today in the U.S.¹

Hispanic Americans – known widely for their rich cultures and family-centric communities – continue to contribute much to American society, with latin music, food, business, and much more increasing their footprint across the nation.

Still, when it comes to healthcare, things aren’t always as bright for Hispanic Americans. For example, they are less likely to have health insurance or receive preventative care.²

When looking at the social determinants of health, which are defined by the Center for Disease Control (CDC) as non-medical factors that influence health outcomes, there are a number of drivers contributing to health disparities among Hispanic Americans.²

In a 2021 survey, 44% of Hispanic Americans said that language and cultural barriers contribute to why they have generally have worse health outcomes than others in the U.S.³ This growing cultural group also experiences higher poverty rates, particularly among immigrants.³

In addition, Hispanic-American children are nearly two times as likely to experience obesity when compared to non-Hispanic, white children.⁴ Increased health complications that can come with child obesity are increased blood pressure, diabetes and risk for heart disease.⁴

There are groups out there that are making strides to counteract these and other disparities, including the Hispanic Health Coalition.

Based in Houston, the Coalition is a collective of community leaders, advocates, and others committed to advancing health equity through education, advocacy, and research.⁵ (Click here to learn more about the Hispanic Health Coalition). They support students pursuing a career in healthcare with scholarship opportunities and also hold events and educational programs that promote healthy lifestyles and address challenges facing their communities.⁵

Goodside Health is committed to serving patients by providing appropriate, quality care that considers the cultural and ethnic backgrounds, lived experiences, and values of every individual. We understand that:

• Culturally Competent care starts by acknowledging that every racial and ethnic group as well as every person is inherently unique.

• The way that someone receives, processes, and reacts in a healthcare setting is both rooted in their culture and their own lived experience.

• ‘What is important to you?’ and ‘How can we be helpful?’ are always appropriate questions for the patient and family.

• Patients and partners trust Goodside Care to care for their families because of our expertise as well as our capacity to adjust recommendations to best meet the patient’s and family’s life circumstances.

Goodside Health is proud to serve a growing number of increasingly diverse communities through our school-based and virtual care services as well as across our Urgent Care for Kids clinics.

Stay tuned to our Good News page as we celebrate important cultural and diversity observances throughout 2023.