LGBTQ Commitment

Proud to Serve the Healthcare Needs of the LGBTQ Community in Greater Palm Springs

Desert Care Network’s Desert Regional Medical Center is proud to have been named a Leader in LGBTQ Healthcare Equality in the Healthcare Equality Index from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation. Our hospital has been committed to care and support for the LGBTQ community for many years.

We are committed to providing an inclusive environment where individuals are treated with respect and compassion. We are dedicated to diversity among our employees, and we provide training to those who provide care and service in our hospital. Desert Care Network also is committed to outreach and support for supports many LGBTQ events and organizations in the community, including:

• The LGBT Community Center of the Desert
• DAP Health
• Desert AIDS Walk
• Desert Business Association, the LGBT Chamber of Commerce for the Coachella Valley
• Greater Palm Springs Pride

Transgender Advocate

Desert Regional Medical Center provides a transgender advocate and healthcare navigator. For navigator services, please contact Jim Kelley at (760) 323-6780 or [email protected].

History of Compassionate Care

In the early 1990s, when our community was filled with uncertainty about HIV/AIDS, Desert Regional Medical Center (then Desert Hospital) responded to the healthcare needs of our neighbors. In 1995 – the year that AIDS was the leading cause of death in America among people ages 25 to 55 – a group of dedicated volunteers at Desert Regional, led by the late Guy Lawson, worked with the hospital to transform the third floor of our East Tower into a “home away from home” for the very seriously ill in our hospital’s Special Care Unit. Thankfully, the need for inpatient palliative care that was provided in our Special Care Unit has subsided, but the hospital’s commitment to the community and to eliminating HIV/AIDs continues.

Get Tested Coachella Valley

In 2013, Desert Regional became the lead sponsor of Get Tested Coachella Valley, a three-year effort led by Desert AIDS Project, to combat apathy and stigma and raise awareness about HIV and the need for everyone in the Coachella Valley to know their HIV status. Desert Regional’s $1.5 million commitment launched a Valley-wide coalition and a major awareness campaign that included mobile testing vehicles traveling around the region. Over the course of this outreach campaign, coalition partners reported more than 80,000 tests were completed. A 2017 survey found that nearly 60 percent of the Valley was aware of the campaign.

We Welcome Your Voice

Desert Care Network welcomes the input of our patients and their families. For example, Desert Regional Medical Center has an active Patient & Family Advisory Council. If you are interested in helping us shape the future of care, please fill out a short application and send it to [email protected].