Diversity Drives Innovation: Chattanooga Entrepreneurs Champion Inclusivity in Health Care
Delivering high-quality and comprehensive health care in Greater Chattanooga requires a roster of providers that mirrors the diversity of its population, which includes various ethnic, racial and socioeconomic groups.
Providers, such as Michalle Morris, owner of Scenic City Wellness, and Gideon Thomas, founder and CEO of Serious Health, show that inclusivity leads to improved patient outcomes and satisfaction and fosters innovation and creativity within the health care industry.
In This Article
Scenic City Wellness: Bridging Health Care Disparities
“Starting Scenic City Wellness was a deeply personal and purpose-driven journey for me,” says Morris, an adult nurse practitioner with more than 20 years of experience in the health care field. “Over the years, my experience in the medical field exposed me to a glaring issue — the pervasive lack of empathy, compassion and trust faced by minorities within the health care system.”
Michalle Morris, Scenic City Wellness
The issues, she says, ranged from negative interactions with health care providers to challenges related to access and the inability to afford necessary care.
“It became increasingly evident that ignoring these issues would only allow them to magnify over time,” she says.
Morris opened the primary care clinic in 2019 to address the systemic and individual barriers minority patients sometimes face in accessing health care and bridge the disparities that disproportionately affect minorities.
While her journey has been challenging at times, Morris says a network of mentors and advisers in Chattanooga helped her overcome many of the hurdles associated with doing business as a woman of color.
“Connecting with wise mentors has been instrumental, providing business insight and offering invaluable life lessons,” she says. “The local business environment is positively influenced by strategic partnerships with like-minded individuals. These collaborations not only enhance our business operations but also open doors to unique opportunities.”
Serious Health: Revolutionizing Home Care
Thomas entered the health care industry after she was unable to find a suitable care facility for her family members.
Gideon Thomas, founder and CEO of Serious Health
“I was working in the corporate world and had a great career for over a decade that I loved. But then my dad had a stroke, and my stepdad had a car accident that left him debilitated. Then, my grandmother lost hospice support. I had three family members who needed services at the same time. I thought I’d take a week off work to find them care. I thought it would be easy, but it wasn’t,” Thomas says.
After searching for quality care options with disappointing results, Thomas decided to start her own business, Serious Health. The agency connects elderly and disabled patients with qualified nurses who provide care in the nurses’ own homes.
“Everything that we do is not only changing the field of health care of Chattanooga, but it’s changing the field of health care for the world,” she says.
Thomas was awarded a grant from the National Institute on Aging (NIA) through the Small Business Innovation Research program. She says organizations, such as the NIA, the Hamilton County Business Development Center and the Chattanooga Area Chamber of Commerce’s INCubator program, played a pivotal role in helping her business get off the ground.
“When I started, I didn’t realize I was starting a business. I was just going to churches and sorority events, asking people to volunteer to sit with elderly clients. But when it came time to apply for a license, I realized I needed things like office space,” Thomas says. “The Business Development Center provided us a space below market, and the chamber wrapped a bunch of services around us, like marketing and helping us find and apply for grants.”
“If you make investments in yourself and in learning culture, over time, things will shift for the better.”
Wade Hinton, Hinton & Co.
Chattanooga Chamber’s Procurement Program: Supporting Minority Vendors
To continue supporting diversity in health care, the Chattanooga Area Chamber launched a pilot program to help minority vendors secure contracts with Erlanger Health System. The chamber partners with Erlanger to host information sessions for would-be vendors and offer help through the bid process.
“At the Chattanooga Area Chamber, our strategic goals gave focus to equity and economic mobility with the understanding that inclusion isn’t about checking boxes; it’s about asking the hard questions and then rolling up your sleeves to do the work,” says Lorne Steedley, vice president of diversity and inclusive growth for the chamber.
Q&A with Wade Hinton, Culture Consultant
Greater Chattanooga’s economic growth thrives on the business community, actively fostering diversity, equity and inclusion. Wade Hinton, whose company Hinton & Co. works with businesses to design diversity and inclusion programs, speaks about DEI best practices and advice he gives to companies beginning their DEI journey.
Wade Hinton, Hinton & Co.
Having a culture that’s inclusive — one where — ultimately is good for business and good for the sustainability of organizations. Employees who are looking to find their next role and who want to stay and grow in these organizations want to make sure that they’re a part of an organization that values them for their past experiences and everything they bring to the table.
The first thing I would encourage them to do is assess where the company culture is currently to get a sense of what their employees and the leadership value and prioritize. Inclusion is a first step beyond this assessment. Then, you can begin to map out your DEI journey and make investments in those areas where you have opportunities to improve, as well as root out those things that are doing more harm than good to your company culture. One way to do this is by listening to your employees, by conducting surveys, and by interviewing your leaders and asking them directly what their vision is for inclusion.
If you make investments in yourself and in a learning culture — a culture where there’s psychological safety and where you can collaborate — over time, things will shift for the better, but you have to be consistent. Some anxiety comes along with this because people don’t want to make any wrong decisions, but ultimately, that investment and that consistency leads to a place where they show up differently for their employees and their community.
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