Health Management and Policy Alert

The elective care backlog and ethnicity

Nuffield Trust -
This research looks at variation in treatment rates for routine hospital care, both before and during the Covid-19 pandemic. It considers changes in elective activity overall and specifically in relation to seven groups of common hospital procedures across five main ethnic groups (White, Mixed, Asian, Black and Other). The focus is on ethnic variations, but it also considers variations by deprivation and region because the proportion of ethnic minority groups is higher in more deprived areas, in cities and in some regions.

• Report
• Nuffield Trust - publications

Sexual orientation and gender identity in the medical profession

British Medical Association - 
This report has found that fewer than half (46 per cent) of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer respondents feel able to be open about their sexual orientation where they work or study. The report, based on 2,490 responses from doctors across the UK, suggests a medical workforce that still suffers from and engages in persistent negative stereotypes, derogatory language and social exclusion. It makes several recommendations around improving medical curricula, better training, increasing the visibility of LGBTQ+ role models and enabling dialogue and space to learn.

• Report
• British Medical Association - press release

BMA-DAUK RMO survey 2022: results summary

British Medical Association (BMA) - 

This survey of the experiences of resident medical officers (RMOs) in the UK, conducted by the BMA and Doctors Association UK (DAUK), finds widespread poor conditions, low pay and excessive working hours. RMOs — doctors who provide resident services largely in the independent health sector and are most frequently recruited abroad as international medical graduates — describe pay deductions, bullying, and multiple instances of racism.

• Survey results
• Press release

 

Internationally trained professionals joining the NMC register: 1 April 2021–31 March 2022

Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) - 

This analysis reveals that the profile of international professionals registered in 2021–2022 is very different from UK joiners and the register they joined. They’re more likely to be men and they’re much more likely to be ethnically diverse. The NMC is calling on health and care employers to fully support internationally trained professionals into UK practice – and join with UK trained nurses and midwives to create the most inclusive environment possible.

• Analysis
• Press release

Health and care LGBTQ+ inclusion framework

NHS Confederation -
The LGBTQ+ population in the UK experiences significant physical and mental health inequalities compared to the general population. These inequalities extend from increased risk factors for ill health and barriers to accessing health care and support, to discrimination against LGBTQ+ staff within the workplace. This framework comprises six key pillars of inclusivity that organisations should aim to build to create and maintain inclusive cultures: visible leadership and confident staff; a strong knowledge base; being non-heteronormative and non-cisnormative; collecting and reporting data; listening to service users; and proactively seeking out partners to co-deliver services.

• Framework
• NHS Confederation - publications

Autistic people’s healthcare information strategy for England

NHS England - 

This document sets out an initial strategy for the development of information about the health of, and healthcare received by autistic people in England, from sources already collected or in the process of being established.

• Strategy
• More detail

How are we doing? A coproduced approach to tracking young Black men’s experiences of community wellbeing and mental health programmes

Centre for Mental Health - 

There are few culturally relevant tools focusing on young Black men’s mental health outcomes. Using approaches that lack cultural sensitivity limit services’ ability to know whether they are working well, and can lead to mistrust and disengagement. Funded by Mind, Centre for Mental Health has designed a new, culturally informed approach to monitoring young Black men’s outcomes for accessing wellbeing support — Culturally appropriate evaluation for young Black men. It was coproduced with young Black men to identify what impact a service has on their mental health and wellbeing. Community wellbeing and mental health programmes are being asked to pilot the tool, to help determine its effectiveness.

• Report
• More detail

Equity in medical devices: independent review call for evidence

Department of Health and Social Care - 

As part of an independent review on equity in medical devices led by Professor Dame Margaret Whitehead, the government is seeking to tackle disparities in healthcare by gathering new evidence on how medical devices and technologies may be biased against patients of different ethnicities, genders and other socio-demographic groups. The consultation closes at 11:45pm on 6 October 2022.

• Consultation document
• Press release

 

Ambitious for change: research into NMC processes and people’s protected characteristics

Nursing & Midwifery Council (NMC) -
This report outlines the findings from research into why some professionals have different experiences of NMC's processes. The report aims to understand why these differences exist and the impact they have on the workforce. The findings highlight opportunities to improve regulatory activities and ensure processes are fair. They also draw attention to how inequalities which cut across the health and social care sector and exist in wider society are contributing to the disparities.

• Report
• NMC - news

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