Diversity in the Healthcare Industry

Kerma Medical Products, Inc. is a Veteran-Minority Owned Company, certified by the Carolinas-Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council (CVMSDC), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VOSB).

We at Kerma Medical pride ourselves in being able to provide an enriching, fulfilling, and rewarding environment for our customers, vendors, and employees. Inclusion and diversity in the workplace can increase employee engagement and employee retention, this can lead to new ideas from different perspectives.

Kerma is one of the largest veteran minority owned companies in the healthcare private sector and we provide our customers and partners with flexible solutions that can offer a direct impact to their Diversity goals and initiatives. We are honored to have received the following acknowledgements over the years:

• Vizient’s Diversity Supplier of the Year Award
• Kaiser Permanente’s Exceptional Partner Award
• HealthTrust Award Recipient (7x)
• Owens & Minor Award Recipient (3x)
• MedAssets Award Recipient (3x)
  • Diverse Supplier of the year
• Premier Supplier Award for Diversity – Honorable Mention
• CVMSDC Award Recipient (2x)

Having diversity in the work environment is not only good for engagement internally and externally, but it also provides the company with new innovative ideas, a group think mindset, and can potentially unlock doors to accessing contracts, new opportunities, and relationships. Supplier Diversity is a focus with the public and private sectors, in many industries. It is imperative that businesses develop diversity strategies to meet the needs of their current and potential customers. Being a certified diversity company can lead to new opportunities and further innovation for the business.

Partnering with certified diverse companies in your industry can help build an extensive network which includes a diverse set of viewpoints, products, and services. It can help accelerate your progress by combining resources and broadening your reach to different people who have access, that you may not have. We are currently living in the most diverse generation of our time and the next generation of consumers is wanting change.

• “By joining hundreds of NMSDC corporate members, your company becomes an integral part of shaping the global supply diversity landscape. It’s been proven that a more qualified and inclusive work force leads to improve market share and reduced operating cost”
• https://nmsdc.org

• “Carolinas-Virginia Minority Supplier Development Council (CVMSDC) is a non-profit corporation; chartered 44 years ago to enhance business opportunities for minority-owned companies by providing support through developing mutually beneficial networking opportunities with corporate members and promoting minority business development.”
• https://cvmsdc.org

• Veteran Affairs (VA) – “Get verified through the Vets First Verification Program to participate in the Veterans First Contracting Program for VA set-asides and sole-source contracts for SDVOSBs and VOSBs.”
• https://www.va.gov/OSDBU

• “WBENC was founded in 1997 to develop a nationwide standard for women-owned business certification.”
• https://www.wbenc.org/

• “The NGLCC is the business voice of the LGBT community, the largest advocacy organization dedicated to expanding economic opportunities and advancements for LGBT people, and the exclusive certifying body for LGBT-owned businesses.”
• https://www.nglcc.org/

• Healthcare Supplier Diversity Alliance (HSDA) – “To lead healthcare supplier diversity by building awareness through education and creating pathways to potential opportunities for historically underutilized businesses and all healthcare supply chain stakeholders.”
• https://www.hsdafordiversity.org/index.php/about-hsda

• “The Earl G. Reubel Awards recognize healthcare industry leaders — individuals and organizations — who advocate for diversity within the healthcare supply chain.”
• https://www.owens-minor.com/earl-g-reubel-award/