Measuring Change in Overcoming Implicit Biases in Behavior by Emergency Care Center Providers

Measuring Change in Overcoming Implicit Biases in Behavior by Emergency Care Center Providers

Implicit bias is a form of bias in which a person's automatic and unintentional thoughts of another person or group influence either positively or negatively their behavior or the decisions they make. Studies show that healthcare providers have the same amount of bias as any other person and that it can affect patient care. However, in the emergency room, which is fast-paced and there is a high number of patients, implicit bias may be higher. Therefore, this study will look at emergency care center (ECC) providers' willingness to change their implicit bias behaviors. After, it will provide implicit bias education designed for the ECC to the healthcare providers at SMHCS Sarasota campus and assess whether it improved their willingness to change implicit bias behaviors when compared to the providers in the SMHCS Venice campus who did not receive the education.

Studies have shown that implicit bias is present in healthcare providers, including those in the emergency room, it is necessary to understand whether emergency providers are willing to change their implicit bias behaviors and provide them with the education and resources tailored to it so that they can be aware of it and make a positive change towards improving it even when they are pressured by time and never-ending tasks.

The observational study will use a two-group pretest-posttest design to assess willingness to change implicit bias behaviors among healthcare staff in the ECC. Healthcare providers will be recruited from two SMHCS clinical sites: Sarasota Memorial Hospital's (SMH) -Sarasota Campus ECC and SMH's-Venice Campus ECC.

Participants are expected to fill out the initial surveys, complete the implicit bias education, and do the posttest (re-administer the Measuring Change in Overcoming Implicit Biases in Behavior by Emergency Medicine Personnel questionnaire), which is expected to take approximately 6-18 months.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Individuals will be eligible for the study if they are 18 years or older and are active emergency medicine staff in the SMH-Sarasota or the SMH-Venice campus ECC. Participants must also be able to understand the requirements of the study, be willing and able to provide informed consent, and participate in all required study activities.

Exclusion Criteria:

• N/A