Health Management and Policy Alert

Experiences from health and social care: the treatment of lower-paid ethnic minority workers

Equality and Human Rights Commission - 
This is a report of the findings of an inquiry to assess the treatment and experiences of lower-paid ethnic minority workers in health and social care, particularly during the Covid-19 pandemic. It found: incomplete data on lower-paid ethnic minority workers, particularly in adult social care; different treatment and experiences at work; commissioning and outsourcing leading to poor pay and insecure work; low awareness of employment rights; and fear of raising concerns and a lack of mechanisms to do so.

• Report
• Equality and Human Rights Commission - news

Shattered hopes: black and minority ethnic leaders’ experiences of breaking the glass ceiling in the NHS

NHS Confederation -
This survey, carried out by the NHS Confederation’s BME Leadership Network, found that many senior leaders from BME backgrounds had experienced verbal abuse and behaviour targeting their racial, national or cultural heritage at least once in the last three years. In addition, only one in ten respondents were confident that the NHS is delivering its commitment to combat institutional racism.

• Report
• NHS Confederation - news

Delivering racial equality in medicine

British Medical Association (BMA) -
This report reveals the possibility of a major exodus of doctors of ethnic minority backgrounds, due to persistent and intolerable levels of racism faced at a personal and institutional level. Nearly one third of doctors surveyed have considered leaving the NHS or have already left within the past two years due to race discrimination, with 42 per cent of Black and 41 per cent Asian doctors in particular having considered leaving or having left.

• Report
• BMA - press release

Mental Health Act reform: race and ethnic inequalities

Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology -
The Government announced plans in the Queen’s Speech to bring forward legislation to reform the Mental Health Act 1983. The proposals include approaches to reduce the disproportionate number of individuals from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities subject to compulsory detention and treatment. This briefing outlines research on race and ethnic inequalities in relation to the Act, summarises proposals for reform and stakeholder views.

• Briefing
• Parliamentary Office of Science and Technology - publications

South Asian Dementia Pathway Toolkit (ADaPT)

Race Equality Foundation -
This toolkit aims to provide improved culturally sensitive support for people living with dementia from South Asian communities. People from South Asian communities are at greater risk of developing dementia but are less likely to access all points of the care pathway – and more likely to present in crisis and/or at a later stage. They are more likely to face barriers including a late or missed diagnosis, reduced access to treatments, and inappropriate or inadequate support coupled with problems caused by language barriers. They often rely on local, community-led organisations for support.

• Toolkit
• Race Equality Foundation - press release

Systemic racism, not broken bodies: an inquiry into racial injustice and human rights in UK maternity care

Birthrights - 

This year-long inquiry heard testimony from women, birthing people, healthcare professionals and lawyers outlining how systemic racism within maternity care – from individual interactions and workforce culture through to curriculums and policies – can have a deep and devastating impact on basic rights in childbirth. The report sets out five actions maternity services should take to drive forward concrete change. Free registration is required to download the full report.

• Report
• Executive summary

 

Workforce Disability Equality Standard: 2021 data analysis report for NHS trusts and foundation trusts

NHS England -
This report provides a summary of the 2021 national data analysis and presents key findings and recommendations for continued focus and actions by trusts. regions and the national Equality, Diversity and Inclusion team at NHS England and NHS Improvement. It enables a comparison of year on year progress into the career and workplace experiences of NHS disabled staff.

• Report
• NHS England - publications

Key findings from Healthwatch England’s national dental polling in 2022

Healthwatch England - 

A representative poll of 2,026 adults based in England on attitudes to NHS dentistry shows that half of the adults in England find dental charges unfair amid escalating living costs. Forty-one per cent of respondents said they found it difficult to book an NHS dental appointment, whilst one in five (20 per cent) couldn’t access all the treatments they needed. Healthwatch England has warned decision-makers that NHS dentistry is in desperate need of reform.

• Key findings
• Press release

Improving inclusion in health and care research: reflections and next steps

HSR UK -
In autumn 2021 HSR UK, the Nuffield Trust, the King’s Fund, the Health Foundation and PPI representatives from the Health Foundation Inclusion Panel co-developed a series of events to address improving inclusion in health and care research. These events aimed to showcase people, projects and organisations approaching research in inclusive and innovative ways. The events were also used to scrutinise the deeply embedded barriers to inclusion and consider how they might be tackled, at the research project, system and funding level. This report shares insights from the expert speakers who participated in events, as well as reflections and learnings from running the series.

• Report
• HSR UK - publications

A response to the Race and Health Observatory (RHO) rapid evidence review into ethnic inequalities in healthcare

This report looks at the NHS Race and Health Observatory (RHO) as a case study and its work to ‘identify and tackle ethnic inequalities’ in health. The RHO exists to bring about equality of outcomes in health care and calls for radical action, but makes calls for more research to find out precisely what that entails. Central to its recent report, Ethnic inequalities in health care: a rapid evidence review, was the role of racism - those who are not white are treated worse, given the wrong treatment, and avoid getting help for ‘fear of racist treatment from NHS healthcare professionals’. This report analyses rapid evidence review and questions the assumptions and conclusions contained in this work. It questions why the RHO exists and if it is achieving its aim of ‘equality of outcome’ for different ethnic groups.

• Report
• Civitas - publications