Vision and Mission
The vision of the Nevada Office of Minority Health and Equity (NOMHE) is to achieve optimal levels of health and wellness for all minority groups and marginalized communities across the state.
NOMHE’s mission is to avoid and/or reverse disproportionately experienced, health-related disparities among the state’s most vulnerable, high-risk populations.
Health Equity Action Plan (HEAP)
The Nevada Office of Minority Health & Equity has published the statewide Health Equity Action Plan (HEAP). The HEAP aims to help government institutions, agencies, and organizations across the state integrate health equity considerations into their work, by providing a framework to examine and challenge practices that perpetuate health inequities. The HEAP includes a glossary of terms, an overview of health equity, and identifies improvement areas. It also offers policy, program, and resource recommendations to turn theory into action. The development of the HEAP was a collaborative effort, with contributions from state and local agencies, public and private health providers, academic institutions, tribal and rural partners, community-based organizations, and non-profit organizations.
If you have any questions regarding the Health Equity Action Plan, please contact April Cruda at acruda@dhhs.nv.gov.
Cultural Competency Training for Health Facilities
Ensuring a culturally competent health care system in Nevada with facilities that provide diverse and socially appropriate services to all patients can reduce health disparities. Doctors, nurses and other facility staff who have effective interpersonal and working relationships that supersede cultural differences are essential to successful health care outcomes for patients and residents.
Evidence shows that cultural competency training improves knowledge of health care staff, raises attitudes of the client population and, ultimately, accelerates patient satisfaction through acceptance from their providers and environment. There are suggestions that a culturally competent healthcare facility also leads to more patients following medical orders and care as primary health care and behavioral comfort are inextricably connected. To help improve health care delivery in the state, in 2019 the Nevada Legislature enacted a legal requirement that licensed health facilities provide cultural competency training annually, and at time of hire, for all staff. Regulations have been enacted that provide further details on this requirement.
- For information, including a list of approved trainings, visit
Amplify Equity Toolkit
NOMHE’s Amplify Equity Toolkit features best practices, case studies, training modules, worksheets, and promotional videos vetted by NOMHE staff. Content is culturally responsive and resilient. This means that the available resources are culturally appropriate and in adaptive formats that address all marginalized populations.
Cultural Literacy Strategies include culturally sensitive educational materials for awareness and literacy training. Outreach and Public Awareness Strategies includes how to effectively conduct outreach and promote culturally sensitive public awareness. Surveillance and Emergency Response Strategies includes surveillance-related resources for tracking and evaluating public health outcomes. Action Planning and Reporting Strategies includes resources that enable organizations to create action plans and set equity goals.
Target end users are health equity advocates and/or organizations committed to culturally competent service delivery. If you would like guidance on which tools are applicable to your organization or if you have questions, please contact Tina Dortch at tdortch@dhhs.nv.gov. Check out the Toolkit Overview Presentation.
Minority Health Reports
The state of Nevada, through the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Analytics with assistance from NOMHE, produces a biannual Minority Health Report. Versions of this bi-annual report may be viewed and downloaded using the links below. The most recent Minority Health Report is from 2023. It features vulnerability and health equity indexing, a powerful tool that enables public officials to identify communities that are most vulnerable to vital factors that impact socioeconomic status, household composition, minority status and language, housing and transportation. New health indicators included in the 2023 Report are: access to health; maternal mortality and severe maternal morbidity; COVID-19 related; drug poisonings; juvenile arrests and detentions; and colorectal cancer.
Click below to read a report.
Change Your Gender in Nevada
In recognition of the importance of equitable access to all health-related services,
NOHME is pleased to present A Guide to Name and Gender Marker Changes and Gender Reassignment Services.
The informational booklet:
- contains instructions on managing the process to change your name and gender marker;
- provides insight into Medicaid covered procedures; and
- explains related Nevada law.