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Showing results for tags 'Ethnicity'.
Found 178 results
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Content ArticleHow can we ensure that health and care staff from all backgrounds feel respected, valued and listened to at work? Siva Anandaciva sits down with Karen Bonner, Chief Nurse at Buckinghamshire Healthcare NHS Trust, to talk about the value of having a diverse workforce, and how we can make the health and care system fairer for staff, patients, and communities from ethnic minority groups.
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Content ArticleTests that indicate the health of newborns, moments after birth, are limited and not fit-for-purpose for Black, Asian and ethnic minority babies, and need immediate revision according to the NHS Race and Health Observatory.
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Content ArticleEvidence suggests that maternal mortality has been increasing in the US. Comprehensive estimates do not exist. Long-term trends in maternal mortality ratios (MMRs) for all states by racial and ethnic groups were estimated. The objective of this study was to quantify trends in MMRs (maternal deaths per 100 000 live births) by state for five mutually exclusive racial and ethnic groups using a bayesian extension of the generalised linear model network. The study found that while maternal mortality remains unacceptably high among all racial and ethnic groups in the US, American Indian and Alaska Native and Black individuals are at increased risk, particularly in several states where these inequities had not been previously highlighted. Median state MMRs for the American Indian and Alaska Native and Asian, Native Hawaiian, or Other Pacific Islander populations continue to increase, even after the adoption of a pregnancy checkbox on death certificates. Median state MMR for the Black population remains the highest in the US. Comprehensive mortality surveillance for all states via vital registration identifies states and racial and ethnic groups with the greatest potential to improve maternal mortality. Maternal mortality persists as a source of worsening disparities in many US states and prevention efforts during this study period appear to have had a limited impact in addressing this health crisis.
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Content ArticleRace and ethnicity have been associated with poor pregnancy outcomes in many countries. In the UK, the rates of baby death and stillbirth among Black and Asian mothers are double those for White women. Most studies examine trends for individual countries. This large database study explored how race and ethnicity is linked to pregnancy outcomes in wealthy countries. Key findings Black women consistently had worse outcomes than White women across the globe. Hispanic women were three times more likely to experience baby death compared with White women. South Asian women had an increased risk of early birth and having a baby with an unexpectedly low weight (small for the length of pregnancy) compared with White women. Racial disparities in some outcomes were found in all regions. The researchers call for a global, joined-up approach to tackling disparities. Breaking down barriers to care for ethnic minorities, particularly Black women, could help. More research is needed to understand why outcomes are for worse for ethnic minorities. The researchers recommend routine collection of data on race and ethnicity. The link below takes you to the Plain English summary of the research, you can also view the full research study.
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Content ArticleInstitutional racism within the United Kingdom's (UK) Higher Education (HE) sector, particularly nurse and midwifery education, has lacked empirical research, critical scrutiny, and serious discussion. This paper focuses on the racialised experiences of nurses and midwives during their education in UK universities, including their practice placements. It explores the emotional, physical, and psychological impacts of these experiences. The study concludes that the endemic culture of racism in nurse and midwifery education is a fundamental factor that must be recognised and called out. The study argues that universities and health care trusts need to be accountable for preparing all students to challenge racism and provide equitable learning opportunities that cover the objectives to meet the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) requirements to avoid significant experiences of exclusion and intimidation.
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Content ArticleThis guide aims to help health and social care workers provide dementia care, which corresponds to the needs and wishes of people from a wide range of ethnic groups, especially minority ethnic groups.
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News ArticleHealth officials have “paid lip service” to racism in the NHS for years, leading black, Asian and minority ethnic doctors have warned as they called for “concrete” action to tackle inequalities exposed by a landmark review. The damning study – the largest of its kind – had found “vast” and “widespread” inequity in every aspect of healthcare it reviewed, and warned that this was harming the health of minority ethnic patients in England. In response, an NHS spokesperson said the health service was “already taking action” to improve the experiences of patients and access to services and was working “to drive forward” the recommendations made in the report. However, Dr JS Bamrah, a consultant psychiatrist in Greater Manchester and national chairman of the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin, said he was unsatisfied with the response. “This 166-page review … is a terrible indictment of the current state of the NHS,” he told the Guardian. “As many of us have often said and reported, we don’t need any further reports. It’s action we need, as there are scores of patients who are not getting optimal treatment, and many are being neglected. “It really isn’t good enough for NHS bosses to say that action is being taken and it’s even more disappointing to then not see any concrete proposals on dealing with glaring disparities despite all that we have learnt during the pandemic.” Dr Rajesh Mohan, presidential lead for race and equality at the Royal College of Psychiatrists, said it was “time for warm words to end” as he urged NHS leaders to “do everything they can to ensure patients from ethnic minority backgrounds get the care they need”. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 15 February 2022
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News ArticleRadical action is needed urgently to tackle “overwhelming” minority ethnic health inequalities in the NHS, leading experts have said, after a damning study found the “vast” and “widespread” inequity in every aspect of healthcare it reviewed was harming the health of millions of patients. Racism, racial discrimination, barriers to accessing healthcare and woeful ethnicity data collection have “negatively impacted” the health of black, Asian and minority ethnic people in England for years, according to the review, commissioned by the NHS Race and Health Observatory, which reveals the true scale of health inequalities faced by ethnic minorities for the first time. “Ethnic inequalities in health outcomes are evident at every stage throughout the life course, from birth to death,” says the review, the largest of its kind. Yet despite “clear”, “convincing” and “persistent” evidence that ethnic minorities are being failed, and repeated pledges of action, no “significant change” has yet been made in the NHS, it adds. From mental health to maternity care, the sweeping review led by the University of Manchester paints a devastating picture of a healthcare system still failing minority ethnic patients despite concerns previously raised about the harm being caused. “By drawing together the evidence, and plugging the gaps where we find them, we have made a clear and overwhelming case for radical action on race inequity in our healthcare system,” said Habib Naqvi, the director of the NHS Race and Health Observatory, an independent body established by the NHS in 2020 to investigate health inequalities in England. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 13 February 2022
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News Article
Miscarriage: 'I was in pain and they did not listen'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Research shows black women are at a 40% higher risk of pregnancy loss than white women. It is an urgent problem, which the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists says needs greater attention, with many complex reasons driving this higher risk. These include a lack of quality research involving all ethnicities - but RCOG head Dr Edward Morris says implicit racial bias is also affecting some women's experience of care. Isabel Gomes Obasi and her husband, Paulson, from Coventry, are expecting a baby boy in March. They are extremely anxious as almost a year ago their baby boy Andre died four months into Isabel's pregnancy. Giving birth to Andre was extremely traumatic, Isabel says, but how she was treated when in severe pain and bleeding, in the days before her loss, made the experience worse. "We knew something was wrong, so we went into hospital and waited five hours to be seen by a doctor," she says. "I remember being laughed at by one of the nurses, who said, 'Just go home. Why do you keep coming in?'" Isabel was checked over and told the baby was fine but says her intuition and pain were belittled and ignored. Within 48 hours of going home, Isabel began bleeding heavily. There is little doctors can do at this relatively early stage of pregnancy to save a baby's life. But the feeling of not being listened to has stayed with Isabel ever since. "I just shut down," she says. "The experience made me anxious and depressive, if not suicidal." Asked why she was not listened to, she said: "The colour of my skin," the attitude of some staff was: "'You have black skin - you are not from here - you can wait.'" Dr Morris says it is "unacceptable" women belonging to ethnic minorities face worse outcomes than white women - especially in maternity care. "Implicit racial bias from medical staff can hinder consultations and negatively influence treatment options," he says. This can stop some women engaging with healthcare. Read full story Source: BBC News, 8 February 2022 -
News ArticleThe NHS is "riddled with racism", the chair of the British Medical Association's council has told the BBC. Dr Chaand Nagpaul has spoken out in response to a survey by the BMA, shared exclusively with BBC News. At least 75% of ethnic minority doctors experienced racism more than once in the last two years, while 17.4% said they regularly faced racism at work, the survey said. NHS England said it takes a "zero-tolerance approach" to racism. Racism affects patients as well as doctors' wellbeing, by stopping talented people from progressing fairly and affecting doctors' mental health, Dr Nagpaul warned. "This is about a moral right for anyone who works for the NHS to be treated fairly," he said. Around 40% of the NHS's 123,000 doctors are from minority backgrounds, compared to about 13.8% of the general population. But despite this diversity, doctors told the BBC that there was a toxic "us versus them" culture in NHS trusts across the UK. They said they had faced bogus or disproportionate complaints from colleagues, racist comments from superiors, and even physical assault in the workplace. Some said they had tried to lodge complaints which were then ignored or dismissed without investigation. One consultant, from a black African background, told the BMA that after reporting previous incidents "no action was taken... I feel uncomfortable and anxious of reprisals". Read full story Source: BBC News, 2 February 2022
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News Article
Review reveals trust’s ‘deep-seated’ cultural and governance issues
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
One of the NHS’ most high-profile mental health trusts has ‘multiple’ corporate governance problems and ‘deep-seated’ cultural issues, according to an external review. Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust, which provides mental health, educational and training services in London, commissioned an external firm to look into its leadership amid a period of intense public scrutiny in the latter half of 2021. Among cultural issues identified at the trust, which reviewers described as “deep seated”, was a reluctance of staff to speak up about concerns. Assessors said a recent employment tribunal, which ruled the trust’s treatment of a whistleblower had damaged her professional reputation and “prevented her from proper work on safeguarding”, had impacted the ability of staff to raise concerns. They urged leaders to review their Freedom to Speak Up and whistleblowing procedures. And while reviewers commended board members for commissioning an external review of race equality, they said it had “yielded an outpouring of emotion” which suggested many staff from minority ethnic groups do not feel consistently supported, respected or valued. Read full story Source: HSJ, 25 January 2022 -
News ArticleThe significantly longer waiting times suffered by patients from minority ethnic groups and in more deprived areas for a range of elective procedures have been laid bare in NHS analysis shared with HSJ. The problem of waiting time disparities between different patient groups has been highlighted by health leaders for several years. But the NHS chief who oversaw this new work quantifies the issue for a local NHS trust, provides a template for others to follow, and has led to an improvement in waiting times disparities in response. The analysis of elective waiting lists by Calderdale and Huddersfield Foundation Trust found that in October last year patients from a minority ethnic background were waiting three weeks longer on average than white patients for a “priority two” operation – which must be done within a month. It also found patients from the most deprived communities were waiting 2.5 weeks longer than those from the least deprived areas. However, Owen Williams, who led the trust when the analysis was carried out, said the analysis, which began early last year, contributed to these disparities being cut significantly over the course of 2021. In May last year the trust’s patients from the most deprived areas were waiting 8.5 weeks longer on average for priority two operations than those from more affluent areas, while patients from minority ethnic groups were waiting 7.8 weeks longer than white patients. Mr Williams said NHS trusts boards must be proactive in undertaking similar analysis to reduce health inequalities. Read full story (paywalled) Source: The Guardian, 24 January 2022
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News Article
GP’s ethnicity ‘affects level of support they get’
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A GP’s ethnicity has an impact on the level of leadership support it gets from regulators and external bodies, a new Care Quality Commission (CQC) report has suggested. In 2021, the CQC conducted research looking at concerns raised by some doctors that ethnic minority-led GP practices were “more likely to have a poorer experience or outcomes” from regulation. In a final report, the CQC has admitted ethnic minority-led practices are “not operating on a level playing field”, due to several factors including the fact they are more likely to care for populations with higher levels of socio-economic deprivation and poorer health. This can affect their ability to achieve some national targets used in assessments of quality, and increase challenges around recruitment and funding. The evidence gathered by the CQC also suggested that practices led by ethnic minority doctors “often lacked leadership support from other bodies and suffered from low morale”. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 19 January 2022 -
News Article
NHS race body commits to avoiding blanket terms such as ‘BAME’
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
An independent body set up by the NHS to tackle health inequalities has formally committed to never use blanket acronyms such as “BAME” after feedback that they are not representative. The NHS Race and Health Observatory launched a four-week consultation with the public in July on how best to collectively refer to people from black, Asian and minority ethnic groups. The Observatory said it has become the norm in public policy to use initialisms to refer to a “hugely diverse” group of people, but that renewed scrutiny has been spurred on by the Black Lives Matter movement. It said terminology that “crudely conflates” different groups “does not just erase identities; it can also lead to broad brush policy decisions that fail to appreciate the nuance of ethnic inequality in the UK”. Generic collective terms such as “BAME”, “BME” and “ethnic minority” are “not representative or universally popular”, the Observatory said after receiving responses from 5,104 people. It found no single, collective umbrella term to describe ethnic groups was agreed by the majority of respondents. The body had previously said it was committed to avoiding the use of acronyms and initialisms, but has now formalised this as one of five key principles it is adopting in its communications. Where possible it will be specific about the ethnic groups it is referring to, but where collective terminology is necessary it will “always be guided by context and not adopt a blanket term”. Read full story Source: The Independent, 26 November 2021 -
News ArticleThe system for assessing who should be asked to pay for NHS services “incentivises racial profiling”, an investigation has found. A study by the Institute for Public Policy Research found that overstretched NHS staff sometimes racially profile patients in order to determine who is not “ordinarily resident” in the UK, and therefore must pay for their care. The report is critical of the more stringent charging regime introduced by NHS England over the past decade as part of a series of measures devised to create a hostile environment for people living in the UK without the correct immigration status. Overseas visitors officers have been appointed by NHS trusts, responsible for identifying chargeable patients, as part of a cost recovery programme launched in 2014. One of the officers told the IPPR study they had felt forced to discriminate between patients based on their name. “If you’ve got a, I don’t know, Mohammed Khan and a Fred Cooper, you’re obviously going to go for [investigating] the Mohammed Khan … Even for someone who’s, you know, well I’d like to think hopefully open-minded, like myself, you’re just trying to save yourself time because there’s not enough hours in the day,” the officer said. A hospital employee also reported that discrimination on the basis of ethnicity was used to determine who should be billed for treatment. “It’s a system that is designed to benefit [white] people like me, not people like … the patient on intensive care who is black and British and was unconscious and sent a bill. So why did someone think he was not eligible for care? Given he was unconscious most of the admission, significantly unwell, probably not his accent, more likely his skin colour,” the health worker said. Under the rules, anyone “not ordinarily resident” in the UK should be charged 150% of the NHS national tariff for most secondary (non-urgent) healthcare, but the report found that processes varied across the country, with a lack of consistent training and widespread confusion over the 130-page rules for the charging system. Some healthcare staff told IPPR researchers that they disliked the extra burden of having to consider whether to refer a patient for charging, which they felt distracted them from their core medical responsibilities. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 23 November 2021
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News ArticleHealth checks should be offered to people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds from the age of 25, a report has recommended. MPs examined the disproportionate impact of the Covid pandemic on people from black and Asian backgrounds. They said NHS checks, currently available to 40-70-year-olds in England, could pick up conditions which are linked to severe coronavirus. The role of inequalities in employment and housing was also emphasised. The report, produced by the Women and Equalities Committee, said the government should act to tackle these wider causes of poor health. The committee heard evidence during the course of its investigation that showed 63% of healthcare workers who died after contracting the virus had come from black, Asian or other ethnic minority backgrounds. And during the first peak of the virus, data from the Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre showed 34% of coronavirus patients in ICUs were from an ethnic minority background, whereas they made up 12% of viral pneumonia admissions. Office for National Statistics (ONS) data has also shown that black people were almost twice as likely to die from Covid-19 as white people, with those of Bangladeshi and Pakistani ethnicity about 1.7 times as likely. The report raised concerns the pandemic was entrenching "existing health inequalities". Read full story Source: BBC News, 15December 2020
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News ArticleThe architects behind the new NHS Race and Health Observatory have vowed that it will deliver actionable recommendations within months to tackle the structural racism that exists throughout healthcare. Victor Adebowale and Mala Rao called for an observatory to tackle the ethnic health inequalities in the UK in a special issue of The BMJ that they co-edited in February (bmj.com/racism-in-medicine) and NHS England confirmed at the end of the May that the centre would go ahead. Speaking at a meeting to discuss the aims of the observatory on 12 June, Adebowlae told more than 20 assembled stakeholders that he wanted the new centre “to fire on all cylinders,” making recommendations for changes to services that are likely to affect the health outcomes of people from black and ethnic minority backgrounds “within a couple of months.” Read full story Source: BMJ, 15 June 2020
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News Article
Black and Asian people ‘up to twice as likely to be infected with Covid’
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Black and Asian people are up to twice as likely to be infected with COVID-19 compared to those of white ethnicities, according to a major new report. The risk of ending up in intensive care with coronavirus may be twice as high for people with an Asian background compared to white people, data gathered from more than 18 million individuals in 50 studies across the UK and US also suggests. The report, published in the EClinicalMedicine by The Lancet, is the first-ever meta-analysis of the effect of ethnicity on patients with COVID-19. The scientists behind it said their findings should be of "importance to policymakers" ahead of the possible roll out of a vaccine. Read full story Source: The Independent, 12 November 2020 -
News ArticleNHS leaders are being encouraged to have ‘difficult discussions’ about inequalities, after a trust found its BAME staff reported being ‘systematically… bullied and harassed’, along with other signs of discrimination. A report published by Newcastle Hospitals Foundation Trust found the trust’s black, Asian and minority ethnic staff are more likely than white staff to be bullied or harassed by colleagues, less likely to reach top jobs, and experience higher rates of discrimination from managers. It claims to be the first in-depth review into pay gaps and career progression among BAME workforce at a single trust. The new report revealed that, in a trust survey carried out last year, some BAME staff described being subjected to verbal abuse and racial slurs by colleagues; had left departments after being given no chance of progression; and been “systematically… bullied and harassed”. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 22 September 2020
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News ArticleMore than one in four patients with severe mental health conditions are missing diagnosis when they are admitted to hospital for other reasons, new research suggests. According to data analysed by scientists at University College London, those who are missing these mental illness diagnoses are more likely to be from ethnic minority groups or have a previously diagnosed mental illnesses. However, the situation has improved – in 2006 it was found that mental health diagnoses were missed in more than 50% of cases. "We found encouraging signs that clinicians are more frequently identifying severe mental illnesses in hospital patients than they were a decade ago,” Hassan Mansour, a research assistant at UCL psychiatry, said. “But there's a lot more that can be done, particularly to address disparities between ethnic groups, to ensure that everyone gets the best care available. Training in culturally-sensitive diagnosis may be needed to reduce inequalities in medical care." The researchers have suggested these findings may be due to language barriers or stigma felt by patients. It was also suggested that clinicians may be less able to detect these conditions in people from other ethnic and cultural groups. Read full story Source: The Independent, 18 September 2020
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News Article
Miscarriage rates 'over 40% higher' in black women
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Black women face a significantly higher risk of having a miscarriage than white, research suggests. The Lancet analysis of data on 4.6 million pregnancies in seven countries suggests being black increases miscarriage risk by 43%. It calls for people in the UK to be given support after their first pregnancy loss. Currently, referral to specialist clinics usually occurs after three consecutive losses only. Most countries, including the UK, do not collect statistics, but researchers estimate: 15% of pregnancies end in loss 1% of women will experience recurrent miscarriage. Some estimates of miscarriage rate are higher, but this is due to differences in how countries define pregnancy loss, which can be from a positive pregnancy test or from a scan. The report also found that women who suffered miscarriage, from all ethnic backgrounds, are more vulnerable to long-term health problems, such as blood clots, heart disease and depression. Read full story Source: BBC News, 27 April 2021 -
News Article
Infant mortality in Birmingham 'not openly discussed'
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Infant mortality is not "openly discussed" among some communities, a charity worker in Birmingham said, as the city attempts to tackle a long-standing problem. For the last decade, Birmingham has had one of the highest rates of infant mortality in England. The city council has set up a taskforce in a bid to halve the number of deaths. It heard rates were highest in deprived areas and among Black, Pakistani, and Bangladeshi heritage families. Shabana Qureshi is the women wellbeing manager for the Ashiana Community Project, a charity which works to improve quality of life for those living in Sparkbrook. Figures from the 2011 census show 87% of its population identified as being from an ethnic group other than White British, with the largest ethnic group being Pakistani. Many of women she works with, she said "don't know how to ask the right questions" and so are "not informed" about issues. Many people in the communities they work with, she said, have low education levels and are more likely to suffer with maternity health issues, but find it difficult to access services. "[Infant mortality] is not something that is discussed openly," she said. "A lot of women live within extended families and are sometimes not aware of the risks, they live with these conditions and health inequalities." She said any services which hope to tackle these problems need to involve communities, and be designed to be relatable, culturally sensitive and maintain trust. Read full story Source: BBC News, 22 April 2021 -
News Article
Windrush scandal made ethnic minority people ‘fearful’ of using cancer services
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Fears that their data would be shared with the Home Office following the Windrush scandal left some people from ethnic minorities afraid to access cancer services during the pandemic, an NHS England document has revealed. The paper from the West Midlands Cancer Alliance said there was a “perception” the government was “accelerating immigration removals” and that, as a result, “individuals (particularly those affected by the Windrush scandal) are then fearful of accessing cancer treatment and may not participate in screening programmes for fear their information will be inappropriately shared with the Home Office”. The news comes after figures released last week showed the fall-off in referral and treatment of Black-British patients for cancer during the early stages of the pandemic was sharper than for their White-British counterparts. Referrals and first treatments for cancer dipped across the board in April last year. However, by July, White patients were receiving 77 per cent of the treatment volumes they had done 12 months before. The figure for Black patients was 67 per cent. This 10 percentage point difference continued in August and September, as treatment volumes for White-British patients recovered to 83 and 91 per cent respectively. Parity was achieved from October to December 2020, the latest period for which data is available. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 22 April 2021 -
News Article
‘I felt humiliated’: parents respond to NHS maternity care racial bias inquiry
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Feeling manipulated into having medical procedures, dismissed by professionals and labelled with racial stereotypes are among the complaints of parents who responded to a national inquiry into racial injustice in UK maternity care. A panel established by the charity Birthrights is investigating discrimination ranging from explicit racism to racial bias and microaggressions that amount to poorer care. It comes as parliament is due on 19 April to debate the large racial disparity in maternal mortality in British hospitals, after a petition from the campaign group Five X More gathered 187,519 signatures. Black women are four times more likely than white women to die during pregnancy or childbirth in the UK. Testimonies include that of a British Bangladeshi woman who said her labour concerns were dismissed. “I felt unsafe and like maternity professionals are not used to being challenged by brown women,” she said. “There is a stereotype of Asian women that we are tame, quiet and compliant people who have no voice and will be obedient. “I was treated like a vessel, not like a human. The experience left me feeling humiliated, disempowered and ashamed.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 13 April 2021 -
News ArticleYounger adults and those living in poorer neighbourhoods and black people have the highest levels of vaccine hesitancy, new survey data from the Office for National Statistics has shown. The vast majority of Britons back the COVID-19 vaccines and are keen to be inoculated, with more than 9 out 10 people being positive about the jab. But the ONS said data from a survey between 13 January and 7 February revealed reluctance among less than 10% of the population. It found more than 4 in 10 of black or black British adults reported vaccine hesitancy, the highest of all ethnic groups, while adults aged 16-29 were most likely to report hesitancy, at around 1 in 6 or 17%. Adults living in the most deprived areas of England were more likely to report vaccine hesitancy at 16%, compared with 7% of adults in the least deprived areas of England. This has been evident in the take up of the vaccine among some deprived areas of the country which have struggled to vaccinate everyone in priority groups. Even among NHS and social care staff there has been reported hesitancy over vaccines, particularly among BAME staff. Read full story Source: The Independent, 9 March 2021
