Search the hub
Showing results for tags 'Health Disparities'.
Found 805 results
-
News Article
Women with type 2 diabetes have 60% increased chance of early death
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Women in the UK with type 2 diabetes have a 60% increased risk of an early death and will live five years less than the average woman in the general population, early research suggests. Scientists have also found that men with the disease have a 44% increased risk of dying prematurely and live 4.5 years less. Results also suggest that smoking shortens the life expectancy of people with type 2 diabetes by 10 years, while diagnosis at a younger age cuts life expectancy by over eight years. The findings, presented at the European Association for the Study of Diabetes in Stockholm, Sweden, are based on a cohort of nearly 12,000 patients at the Salford Royal Hospital in Salford. “A woman with type 2 diabetes, for example, might live five years less than the average woman in the general population, while someone diagnosed at a younger age might lose eight years of life expectancy. “It is vital that the groups at the highest risk are made aware of not just the increased risk that they face but also the size of the risk." “Doing so may make the health advice they are given seem more relevant and so help them make changes that can improve their quality – and length – of life.” Read full story Source: The Independent, 21 September 2022 -
News Article
Millions in poor health due to lack of rehab after illness, warns UK report
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Millions of people in the UK are suffering poor health because they miss out on vital rehabilitation after strokes, heart attacks and cancer, which in turn is also heaping further pressure on the NHS, a damning report warns. Physiotherapists say some groups of patients are particularly badly affected. Without access to these services, many patients desperately trying to recover from illness became “stuck in a downward spiral”, they said, with some developing other health conditions as a result. The new report by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) says millions of people in marginalised communities, including those from ethnic minorities, are not only more likely to live shorter lives, but also spend a greater proportion of their lives struggling with health difficulties. Vital services that could tackle those inequities are either unavailable or poorly equipped to meet their needs, the report warns, adding that “some communities face particular barriers”. Prof Karen Middleton, the chief executive of the CSP, said: “Rehabilitation services have been under-resourced for decades and were not designed coherently in the first place. This has exacerbated poor health outcomes, particularly for people from marginalised groups. “It’s not only the individual who suffers. Without adequate access to rehabilitation, health conditions worsen to the point where more and more pressure is eventually piled on struggling local health systems and other public services. “We desperately need a modernised recovery and rehabilitation service that adequately supports patients following a health crisis and prevents other conditions developing.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 21 September 2022 -
News Article
Britons of black and south Asian origin with dementia die younger, study finds
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Britons of black and south Asian origin with dementia die younger and sooner after being diagnosed than white people, research has found. South Asian people die 2.97 years younger and black people 2.66 years younger than their white counterparts, according to a study by academics from University College London and the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. A team led by Dr Naaheed Mukadam, from UCL’s division of psychiatry, reached their conclusions after studying health records covering the 21 years between 1997 and 2018 of 662,882 people across the UK who were aged over 65. They found that: Dementia rates have increased across all ethnic groups. Black people are 22% more likely to get dementia than their white peers. Dementia is 17% less common among those of south Asian background. But they have voiced concern about also discovering that south Asian and black people are diagnosed younger, survive for less time and die younger than white people. “The earlier age of dementia diagnosis in people of black and south Asian [origin] … may be related to the higher prevalence of some risk factors for dementia such as, in older south Asians, fewer years of education, and in both groups hypertension [high blood pressure], diabetes and obesity,” they write in their paper, published in the medical journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 18 September 2022 -
Content ArticleThis new report from the British Red Cross describes how asylum seekers struggle to access the internet and lack digital tools. The British Red Cross explained that the report aims to improve understanding of the experiences of digital exclusion among people seeking asylum, and how these experiences may impact access to, and experience of, healthcare. Researchers conducted interviews with 30 people currently seeking asylum across England for the report. The researchers themselves also had lived experience of seeking asylum.
-
Content ArticleThis report by the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit (NPDA) is based on data from 33,251 children and young people receiving care from a paediatric diabetes unit (PDU) in 2021/22 in England and Wales. It found that the increase in incidence of Type 1 diabetes observed in the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic was followed by a continuing increase in the numbers of children newly diagnosed with the condition in 2021/22. Other key findings include: Almost all of those with Type 2 diabetes were overweight or obese, and almost half had a diastolic or systolic blood pressure in the hypertensive range. Despite reductions in the percentages recorded as requiring additional support between 2020/21 and 2021/22, over a third of children and young people were assessed as requiring additional psychological support outside of multidisciplinary meetings. Inequalities persist in terms of the use of diabetes related technologies in relation to ethnicity and deprivation.
-
Content ArticleThis BMJ Leader article from Roger Kline looks at how to tackle structural racism in the NHS, discussing psychological safety and inclusion, and the role leaders need to play.
-
Content ArticleIn the UK, maternal mortality for Black women is currently almost four times higher than for White women, and significant disparities also exist for women of Asian and mixed ethnicity. In this report the Women’s and Equalities Select Committee reviews what is currently understood about the reasons for disparities in maternal deaths, analyses Government and NHS action to date and existing recommendations for change and consider the ongoing challenges to addressing disparities.
-
Content ArticleIn the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, we are all too aware of the urgent health inequalities that plague our world. But these inequalities have always been urgent: modern medicine has a colonial and racist history. Here, in an essential and searingly truthful account, Annabel Sowemimo unravels the colonial roots of modern medicine. Tackling systemic racism, hidden histories and healthcare myths, Sowemimo recounts her own experiences as a doctor, patient and activist. Divided exposes the racial biases of medicine that affect our everyday lives and provides an illuminating - and incredibly necessary - insight into how our world works, and who it works for.
-
Content ArticleCervical cancer disparities persist for Black women despite targeted efforts. Reasons for this vary; one potential factor affecting screening and prevention is perceived discrimination in medical settings. This US study in the Journal of Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities aimed to describe experiences of perceived discrimination in medical settings for Black women and to explore the impact on cervical cancer screening and prevention. The authors concluded that Black women engaging in healthcare are experiencing perceived discrimination in medical settings. They suggest that future interventions should address the poor quality of medical encounters that Black women experience.
-
Content ArticleIn this article for Chamber UK magazine, Lyn Brown MP warns that hysteroscopy could be the next big women's health scandal and calls for dramatic improvements in care. She describes the accounts of women being encouraged to undergo hysteroscopy without anaesthesia and appropriate pain relief, and how lack of informed consent is leaving women feeling violated and scared to undergo future gynaecological procedures. She also describes how she raised the issue in the House of Commons and outlines the failure of the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology's new 'Good Practice Paper' to properly address the decision making process and acknowledge the severity of the pain experienced by many women who undergo hysteroscopy. The article can be found on page 64 of the e-magazine.
-
Content ArticleIn the UK today, nearly 40% of the population are living in poverty because of low income. This means that nurses and midwives are likely to meet people experiencing poverty and deprivation as part of their everyday work and should be ready and able to help them access the assistance they need to overcome the associated challenges. This article in the British Journal of Nursing examines the link between financial status and people's health and wellbeing. The article includes a case study and suggestions as to how nurses and midwives can promote financial wellbeing.
-
Content ArticleThis report outlines the results of the Patient Information Forum's (PIF's) 2022 survey and sets out progress made in the crucial areas of health and digital literacy since the Covid-19 pandemic.
-
Content ArticleThe Prescription Charges Coalition is a group of 50 organisations calling on the Government to scrap prescription charges for people with long-term conditions in England. This report by the Coalition outlines the results of a survey of over 4,000 people with long-term conditions about prescription charges. It highlights that the prescription charge is a barrier to patients with long-term conditions accessing medicine.
-
Content ArticleThis new report from the Tony Blair Institute for Global Change sets out the need to both harness the power of new technologies and to create a streamlined, strategic state to revolutionise the delivery of public services. Nowhere is this approach more urgently needed than on the country’s health. Healthcare demands continue to increase while costs are spiralling as health takes up an ever-higher proportion of public spending. At the same time, outcomes are deteriorating, with UK life expectancy stagnating and health inequalities on the rise. So, we’re all paying more and more to achieve less and less. The report suggests a paradigm shift: we must begin to treat individual and collective health as a national asset. Government must focus its efforts and resources on creating the conditions in which population and individual health can flourish.
-
Content ArticleThis blog by the Centre for Mental Health looks at data about young people's mental health in 2022 from NHS Digital, highlighting the urgent need for effective mental health services and support for young people. It looks at what needs to change to improve the picture for young people's mental health including addressing child poverty, implementing whole school and college approaches and investing in early intervention support.
-
Content ArticleResearchers writing in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine say that while UK life expectancy has increased in absolute terms over recent decades, other, similar countries are experiencing larger increases. In 1952, when Queen Elizabeth II came to the throne, the UK had one of the longest life expectancies in the world, ranking seventh globally behind countries such as Norway, Sweden and Denmark. In 2021 the UK was ranked 29th. The researchers show the rankings of the G7 countries at each decade from 1950 to 2020. The G7 is a collection of countries with advanced economies (UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the U.S.) that represent about half of global economic output.
-
Content ArticleIn the US, patients receiving cancer treatment via Medicare or Medicaid—two federal health insurance programmes—can face barriers to accessing treatment when insurers use the Prior Authorization Process to deny access. In this letter to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, the Community Oncology Alliance (COA) outlines its concerns that prior authorizations are acting as "roadblocks to Americans with cancer getting the optimal treatment on a timely basis." Referring to proposed rule changes that aim to reduce the burden that prior authorization processes place on providers, the COA calls for the inclusion of medications to ensure that American's with cancer are not denied the treatment they need.
-
Content ArticleThe Nuffield Trust held its fifteenth Summit in March 2023. In these video interviews captured at the summit, health and care leaders talk about the challenges and issues currently facing the NHS and social care: Prof Kevin Fong on the immense cost of the pandemic to NHS staff Prof Martin Marshall on the range of challenges facing health and care Nigel Edwards on how the NHS gets on the road to recovery Jill Rutter on squeezed budgets and hospitals dominating health finances Dr Arif Rajpura on practical policies for reducing inequality Chris Hopson on promises to decentralise the NHS to better meet patient need
-
Content ArticleNuffield Trust’s fifteenth annual Summit took place in March 2023. These videos feature highlights of the speaker sessions: Diagnosing the NHS Priorities in social care Community and rehabilitation services - the key to easing gridlock? Addressing inequalities in general practice - politics, policy and reality Solving the workforce burnout crisis Improving communication between the NHS and the public Changing the centralised culture of the NHS
-
Content ArticleThis article in BBC Science Focus looks at the factors driving an increase in testosterone prescribing for women in the UK. The author, Dr Michelle Griffin, highlights the need to ensure that there is a strong evidence base for prescribing testosterone to women. While there have been some clinical trials and studies around testosterone as a treatment for low libido, there is concern that patients, doctors and pharma companies are relying on anecdotal accounts of its effectiveness to treat symptoms such as low mood, poor concentration and tiredness. She also highlights that testosterone prescribing is just one example of the lack of research going into women's health issues and treatments, and argues that this is contributing to health inequity.
-
Content ArticleNHS waiting lists have risen to record numbers since the pandemic and attempts to bring down the numbers of people waiting for treatment have been ramping up. The NHS Elective Recovery Plan (ERP), launched in February 2022, is intended to make a major contribution to reducing waiting lists. This paper by consultancy firm Lane Clark & Peacock sets out: how the national waiting list has changed over the year and the impact of the ERP. inequalities in the waiting list by speciality and geography and how the ERP has so far impacted regions differently. how LCP's previous projections compare to 2022’s waiting list and what their projections are for 2027 in light of over a year's worth of new data being available.
-
Content ArticleThis report by the National Paediatric Diabetes Audit (NPDA) looks at diabetes care for children in England and Wales in 2021-22. The effectiveness of diabetes care is measured against NICE guidelines and includes treatment targets, health checks, patient education, psychological wellbeing, and assessment of diabetes-related complications including acute hospital admissions, all of which are vital for monitoring and improving the long-term health and wellbeing of children and young people with diabetes. In 2021/22, 100% of paediatric diabetes teams participated in the NPDA.
-
Content ArticleThis article in the American Journal of Nursing provides basic information about the assessment of dark skin tone and calls for action in academia and professional practice to ensure the performance of effective skin assessments in all patients.
-
Content ArticleDigital technologies can change how care is delivered, making health and care services more accessible, flexible, person centred, and a better experience for patients and staff while also improving efficiency. However, there is no guarantee of these positive effects until digitally enabled services are inclusive and meet the expectations of staff and the public. In this King's Fund long read, explore what digital exclusion is, who is commonly assumed to be excluded, and what can be done to mitigate digital exclusion.
-
Content ArticleA recording of the conference from Midwifery Conversation on ‘action to reduce the disparate deaths and damage to Black mothers and babies in England.'
