UCare  is an independent, nonprofit health plan providing health care and administrative services to nearly 600,000 members throughout Minnesota and parts of western Wisconsin. UCare partners with health care providers, counties, and community organizations to create and deliver Medicare, Medicaid and individual and family health plans. 

Both UCare and Violet share the belief that achieving inclusive care delivery is not just an aspiration, but a tangible goal, and we are excited to announce that we are launching an innovative partnership, aimed at improving health outcomes across the state of Minnesota. Through this partnership, in-network health care providers and a subset of UCare staff will gain access to Violet’s curriculum, equipping them with the knowledge and tools to deliver more culturally competent care. UCare will also utilize Violet’s proprietary skilling data, Violet Benchmarks, to ensure culturally diverse patients can easily access inclusive in-network providers. 

Key tenets of this collaboration include:

• Inclusive care delivery as a learnable skill. By recognizing the nuances of diverse communities and identities, health care providers and participating UCare staff will be able to better address the unique needs of every single patient. 
• Educating providers on health disparities and clinical quality best practices. Training modules focused on health disparities and best practices for inclusive care delivery will help providers build a more inclusive and responsive health care environment for each patient.
• Improving health outcomes through identity-centered care matching. By connecting patients with culturally competent providers, this initiative seeks to reduce disparities in health care access and improve overall health outcomes for underserved communities.

"We are thrilled to partner with Violet to promote our shared mission of advancing health equity in Minnesota," said Pleasant Radford, Jr., Health Equity Officer at UCare. Violet’s equity-centered, community-specific courses offer tools for our clinicians and non-clinical staff to learn, ask questions about what works or doesn’t work, for whom and why, and identify new ways to provide inclusive care for our members. This allows us to improve member health outcomes and create a health care system that is truly inclusive and equitable for all."

"We are excited to collaborate with UCare to empower providers with the knowledge and skills needed to deliver inclusive health care," said Gaurang Choksi, Founder and CEO at Violet. "Together, we can make a profound impact on health outcomes and ensure that every individual receives the care they deserve, regardless of their background or circumstances. And, as someone that grew up on Medicaid, partnering with UCare is extra personal and special to me – especially knowing that we’ll enable thousands of families on Medicaid to access inclusive, in-network care.”

To learn more about our cultural competence education, download Violet’s full course catalog here.