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LAWS OF DELAWARE
VOLUME 83
CHAPTER 367
151st GENERAL ASSEMBLY
FORMERLY
HOUSE SUBSTITUTE NO. 2
FOR
HOUSE BILL NO. 344
AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 16 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO BIAS TRAINING FOR HEALTHCARE WORKERS.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1. Amend Subchapter IX, Chapter 1, Title 16 of the Delaware Code by making insertions as shown by underline and deletions as shown by strikethrough as follows:
§ 197. Delaware Perinatal Quality Collaborative.
(a) (1) The Delaware Perinatal Quality Collaborative (“Collaborative”) is established to improve pregnancy outcomes for women and newborns by addressing all of the following:
a. Obstetrical blood loss management.
b. Pregnant women with substance use disorder.
c. Infants born with neonatal abstinence syndrome.
d. Advancing evidence-based clinical practices and processes through quality care review, audit, and continuous quality improvement.
e. Developing, in collaboration with other stakeholders, guidelines for bias and cultural competency training for hospitals and birthing centers to address disparities in health outcomes.
(k) (1) The Collaborative shall create a subcommittee tasked with developing, issuing, and revising appropriate guidelines for cultural competency training programs consistent with best practices for use by hospitals and freestanding birthing centers in employee training and education programs, for maternal healthcare as well as other fields of healthcare.
(2) The subcommittee membership shall consist of the following members who shall be appointed by the Chair of the Collaborative:
a. 4 members of the Collaborative. The Chair may appoint more or fewer members as needed to carry out the mission of the subcommittee.
b. 6 representatives of major Delaware hospital systems, from a slate of nominees to be provided by the Delaware Healthcare Association. At least 1 hospital system representative shall be a staff nurse.
c. 2 members from the Medical Society of Delaware.
d. 3 members of the community.
(3) In making appointments to the subcommittee the Chair shall endeavor to include members that represent the diversity of the State in regard to disability, race, sexual orientation, gender identity, socioeconomic status, and experience of bias and discrimination.
(4) The subcommittee shall present initial guidelines by July 1, 2023. Each year thereafter, the subcommittee shall review maternal health outcomes, maternal deaths, and disparities for different demographic groups, and determine if the training guidelines should be revised.
(4) Meetings of the subcommittee are open to the public.
(5) The Department of Health and Social Services shall provide staff support to the subcommittee.
Approved July 25, 2022