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Showing results for tags 'Health Disparities'.
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News Article
Ministers pledge to ‘reset the dial’ on women’s health in England
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Ministers have pledged to “reset the dial” on women’s health to tackle decades of gender inequality in England, with plans to appoint a women’s health tsar, eradicate medical taboos, boost menopause support and ban harmful “virginity repair” operations. The Department of Health and Social Care has published its Vision for Women’s Health strategy after 100,000 women came forward to share their healthcare concerns. Maria Caulfield, the minister for women’s health, described some of their experiences as “shocking”. The vision document sets out initial government commitments on women’s health, recognising that “systemwide changes” are needed to tackle “decades of gender health inequality”. The final plan – the Women’s Health Strategy – will be published in spring 2022. On Wednesday night, ministers pledged to introduce legislation criminalising hymenoplasty or any procedure to rebuild or repair the hymen. Such surgery creates scar tissue so that a woman will bleed the next time she has intercourse, making it appear she has never had sex. Young women can be forced to prove they are “pure” on their wedding night. Doctors have called for a ban on the surgery for years, saying it can never be justified on health grounds and is harmful. Separately, the government will appoint a women’s health ambassador to raise the profile of key issues and boost awareness of taboo topics. Ministers will also establish a UK-wide menopause taskforce to investigate how women going through the menopause can be better supported. The cost of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) prescriptions will also be cut by implementing longer prescribing cycles so women will need fewer prescriptions and therefore pay less. The consultation provided “stark and sobering insights” into women’s experiences of health and care and highlighted entrenched problems within the NHS, officials said. Ministers are also considering compulsory training for GPs on women’s health after the idea was raised by women who came forward. The vision document said: “We also heard about a lack of awareness amongst some GPs of the causes of infertility, miscarriages and their relationship with infertility, and the reasons for in vitro fertilisation (IVF) failure.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 22 December 2021 Related reading Gender bias: A threat to women’s health (August 2020) Dangerous exclusions: The risk to patient safety of sex and gender bias Patient Safety Learning: Women’s Health Strategy Consultation Response -
Content Article
The Dahlgren-Whitehead rainbow (1991)
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Health inequalities
The Dahlgren-Whitehead rainbow is a model for determining health inequalities that maps the relationship between the individual, their environment and health. It was developed in 1991 by Göran Dahlgren and Margaret Whitehead and places individuals at the centre, with various layers of influences on health surrounding them, such as individual lifestyle factors, community influences, living and working conditions, and more general social conditions. The model remains one of the most effective illustrations of health determinants, and has had widespread impact in research on health inequality and influences. It has helped researchers develop a range of hypotheses about the determinants of health, explore the relative influence of these determinants on different health outcomes and plot the interactions between the various determinants. -
Content ArticleThis study in the British Journal of General Practice aims to identify and understand the unintended consequences of online consultations in primary care. The authors interviewed 19 patients and 18 general practice staff at eight general practices using online consultation tools in South West and North West England between February 2019 and January 2020. The study found the following unintended consequences of online consultation: Creation of difficulties for some patients in communicating effectively with a GP. The system disadvantaged digitally-excluded patients. Patient uncertainty about how their queries were dealt with, and whether practices used online consultations as their preferred method for patients to contact the practice. Creation of additional work for some staff. Isolation and dissatisfaction for some staff.
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Content Article
This is the third of a short series of blogs in which we take a look back at our work in five areas of patient safety during 2021. In this blog we look at how we’ve been highlighting patient safety concerns relating to health inequalities. Through our work, Patient Safety Learning seeks to harness the knowledge, insights, enthusiasm and commitment of health and social care organisations, professionals and patients for system-wide change and the reduction of avoidable harm. We believe patient safety is not just another priority; it is a core purpose of health and social care. Patient safety should not be negotiable. -
Content Article
Webinar - Inequalities in maternity care (8 December 2021)
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Maternity
This is the recording of a webinar about inequalities in maternity care hosted by the National Maternity and Perinatal Audit (NMPA). The webinar features presentations on a Lancet article 'Adverse pregnancy outcomes attributable to socioeconomic and ethnic inequalities in England: a national cohort study' and on the NMPA report 'Ethnic and socio-economic inequalities in NHS maternity and perinatal care for women and their babies'. The Q&A panel features: Professor Eddie Morris Clo and Tinuke, Five X more Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP Professor Jacqui Dunkley-Bent Professor Marian Knight Professor Asma Khalil -
Content ArticleThe Cardiovascular Disease Prevention Audit (CVDPREVENT) is a national primary care audit that automatically extracts routinely held GP data. This tool provides open access to the data, with clear, actionable insights for those tasked with improving cardiovascular health in England.
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Content ArticleIn this blog, David Buck and Toby Lewis of the King's Fund describe NHS England and NHS Improvement's new 'Core20plus5' approach to tackling health inequalities. They identify risks to the effectiveness of the strategy and highlight the importance of a partnership approach to tackling health inequalities.
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News ArticleLessons learnt in relation to increasing uptake of the COVID-19 vaccine among ethnic minority groups should now be applied to the booster programme, a government progress report recommends. This includes continuing to use respected local voices to build trust and to help tackle misinformation, the report from the government’s Race Disparity Unit says. Such approaches should also be carried over to the winter flu and childhood immunisation programmes and be applied to the work to tackle longer standing health disparities. In June 2020 the minister for equalities was asked to look at why COVID-19 was having a disproportionate impact on ethnic minority groups and to consider how the government response to this could be improved. This latest report is the final one of four. Taken together the reports identified that the main factors behind the higher risk of COVIDd-19 infection for ethnic minority groups include occupation, living in multigenerational households, and living in densely populated urban areas with poor air quality and high levels of deprivations. Read full story Source: BMJ, 3 December 2021
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Content ArticleThis report provides an update on cross-government work to address the disparities highlighted by the Public Health England report 'COVID-19: review of disparities in risks and outcomes', published in June 2020. It sets out how the Government's understanding of and response to the pandemic changed over the lifecycle of this work. The report also includes a summary of progress against recommendations from previous reports, lessons learned from this work and an action plan for addressing some of the longer-term issues identified.
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Content ArticleIn this blog Dr Peter Green, CVDPREVENT Workstream Clinical Lead for the NHS Benchmarking Network, looks at the importance of understanding how demographic factors impact the risk of cardiovascular disease, which is a leading risk factor for premature death. He discusses how the CVDPREVENT audit will help primary care healthcare professionals work with their patients to achieve better outcomes for all.
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Content ArticleIn this podcast for the Care Quality Commission (CQC), Dr Ayisha Ashmore and Dr Faizan Ahmed discuss the CQC's GP Inequalities Project which is investigating the concern that GPs from an ethnic minority background receive poorer CQC ratings or regulatory outcomes.
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Content ArticleRacially and ethnically minoritised healthcare staff groups disproportionately experience and witness workplace discrimination from patients, colleagues and managers. This is visible in their under-representation at senior levels and over-representation in disciplinary proceedings and is associated with adversities such as greater depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms, low job satisfaction and sickness absence. In the UK, little progress has been made despite the implementation of measures to tackle racialised inequities in the health services. Drawing on qualitative interviews with 48 healthcare staff in London (UK), Woodhead et al. identified how micro-level bullying, prejudice, discrimination and harassment behaviours, independently and in combination, exploit and maintain meso-level racialised hierarchies.
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EventuntilCore20PLUS5 is a national NHS England and NHS Improvement approach to support the reduction of health inequalities at both national and system level. The approach defines a target population cohort – the ‘Core20PLUS’ – and identifies ‘5’ focus clinical areas requiring accelerated improvement. This webinar introduces the approach and how it can be implemented as well as summarises key findings from a survey on the approach. Registration will close on 14 December 2021 at 1pm. Joining instructions will be sent to registered delegates by 5pm on 14 December 2021. Register using your NHS/work email address Speakers: Dr Bola Owolabi, Director – Health Inequalities, NHS England and NHS Improvement Dr Marina Soltan, Health Inequalities Improvement Clinical Policy and Delivery Lead - Data and Research, NHS England and NHS Improvement Dr Shahed Ahmad, National Clinical Director for Cardiovascular Disease Prevention, NHS England and NHS Improvement Prof. Edward Kunonga, Director of population Health Management at North England commissioning Support Core20: The most deprived 20% of the national population as identified by the national Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD). The IMD has seven domains with indicators accounting for a wide range of social determinants of health. PLUS: Integrated Care System (ICS)-determined population groups experiencing poorer than average health access, experience and/or outcomes, but not captured in the ‘Core20’ alone. This should be based on ICS population health data. Inclusion health groups include: ethnic minority communities, coastal communities, people with multi-morbidities, protected characteristic groups, people experiencing homelessness, drug and alcohol dependence, vulnerable migrants, Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities, sex workers, people in contact with the justice system, victims of modern slavery and other socially excluded groups. 5: The final part sets out five clinical areas of focus. Governance for these five focus areas sits with national programmes; national and regional teams coordinate local systems to achieve national aims. Maternity: ensuring continuity of care for 75% of women from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities and from the most deprived groups. Severe mental illness (SMI): ensuring annual health checks for 60% of those living with SMI (bringing SMI in line with the success seen in learning disabilities). Chronic respiratory disease: a clear focus on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) driving up uptake of COVID, flu and pneumonia vaccines to reduce infective exacerbations and emergency hospital admissions due to those exacerbations. Early cancer diagnosis: 75% of cases diagnosed at stage 1 or 2 by 2028. Hypertension case-finding: to allow for interventions to optimise blood pressure and minimise the risk of myocardial infarction and stroke.
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News Article
Mental health access frustration for deaf people
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Deaf people are twice as likely to suffer mental health problems than those with hearing, a report has found. The All Wales Deaf Mental Health and Wellbeing Group said help in Wales was behind the rest of the UK and it wants to see significant improvements. It also described the inequalities faced by deaf people trying to access mental health support as "really frustrating". The Welsh government said it would consider the findings of the report. Ffion Griffiths, 23, from Neath, has been deaf since birth, and accessing child and adolescent mental health services in Wales has been a problem over the years. She had to travel to England to get the support she needed. "It's really frustrating because deaf people in England have more opportunities," she said. It means they can be treated and get better quicker but for us, how can we do that?" "How can we expect to recover if we don't have access to the services or any pathways for us to follow to get the treatment that we need in Wales?" Read full story Source: BBC News, 8 December 2021 -
Content ArticleThis report describes the findings of the Care Quality Commission (CQC) review of children and young people’s mental health services. The report focuses on three main aspects of the mental health system for children and young people: People’s experience of and involvement in care How partners plan and deliver services that offer high quality care that can be accessed in a timely fashion How partners in the local area identify mental health needs and what they do to start the process of getting the right support for children and young people The CQC spoke with staff working across different parts of the system, children, young people, parents, families and carers. They also reviewed policies and procedures, and used ‘case-tracking’ to examine in detail how individual children and young people with mental health problems moved through the system.
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Content ArticleThe emergence of the omicron variant has raised concerns that the pandemic is not yet over. In this BMJ opinion piece, William et al. outline four key lessons that governments need to learn from to protect against future pandemics
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Content ArticleThis study in Pain Research and Management reviewed available literature about gender bias in the treatment of pain and gendered norms towards patients with chronic pain. The authors found that gendered norms about men and women with pain are present in research from different scientific fields. They highlight that awareness of the issue can help counteract gender bias in healthcare and support healthcare professionals to provide more equitable care.
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Content ArticleIn this opinion piece for the BMJ, David Oliver, a consultant in geriatrics and acute general medicine, draws lessons from the Grenfell Tower disaster and subsequent public inquiry. 72 people lost their lives in the fire that destroyed Grenfell Tower in 2017. Evidence to the public inquiry has shown that several residents had raised concerns about the building's safety over many years, and that architects, building contractors, and providers and fitters of cladding material had also expressed concerns about the safety of the exterior cladding used on Grenfell Tower. David Oliver highlights that had these concerns been listened to and acted on, the disaster could have been avoided and many lives saved. He draws parallels with concerns being raised by patients about the safety of the healthcare system and highlights the role of staff in repeatedly raising and keeping a record of concerns. He states that NHS leaders must create a culture where no one is afraid to speak out and act to mitigate safety issues. Leaders must expect to be held accountable for their response - or lack of response - to safety issues raised.
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Content ArticleThis training documentary by the South East Perinatal Mental Health team explores race inequalities within the NHS maternity system. It uncovers the stories behind the MBRRACE report figures and looks for answers from leading race and diversity health professionals and campaigners. In the film, midwives and mothers talk frankly about the issues and how individuals can make a difference to create a positive impact on race inequality outcomes for mothers and within maternity teams.
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News ArticleEfforts to end health inequalities should be ‘in the mix’ of metrics used to determine the NHS’ progress against key performance targets, say race inequality experts. In an exclusive interview with HSJ, NHS Race and Health Observatory (RHO) director Habib Naqvi said organisations’ performance on the issue should be scrutinised by an external body to ensure they are held accountable and “not marking their own exam answer”. It comes as the RHO publishes a report that warns the appointment of health inequalities leads across the NHS risks becoming “tokenistic” if they are not adequately supported and held accountable. The report by The King’s Fund think tank has recommended several actions to prevent the introduction of board-level leads from becoming a “hollow gesture”. In August 2020, NHS England asked all NHS organisations to have a named executive board member responsible for tackling inequalities by October that year. The RHO estimates there to be more than 450 of these named leads across the country. The report welcomed this but added “frameworks” of support and accountability should exist to “empower individuals and motivate change”. The recommendations include putting inequalities on an “equal footing” with key performance metrics, as well as a long-term policy focus that puts addressing inequalities “at the heart of system development”. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 1 December 2021
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Content ArticleIn 2020, all NHS organisations were instructed to name a single executive board member as their senior responsible person for tackling health inequalities. Across the NHS, there should now be over 450 dedicated health equality named leads in healthcare organisations. This report published by the independent NHS Race & Health Observatory in collaboration with The King’s Fund sets out recommendations to help ensure senior NHS officials responsible for improving health inequalities are able to make a difference.
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News Article
One percent of the population make up a third of ambulance call outs
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The British Red Cross have found that that 367,000 people, which equates to around one percent of the population in England attend A&E up to 346 times a year. These figures accounted for nearly one in three ambulance call outs and over one in six A&E visits. The research analysis found that a fifth of those repeatedly attending A&E lived alone and also often lived in deprived areas of the country. Frequent users also accounted for 29% of all ambulance call outs and 16% of non-minor-injury A&E visits. The data also revealed that people in their twenties were more likely to repeatedly visit A&E than any other age category. Mike Adamson, chief executive of the British Red Cross, said: 'High intensity use of A&E is closely associated with deprivation and inequalities - if you overlay a map of frequent A&E use and a map of deprivation, they're essentially the same.' Read full story Source: National Health Executive, 29 November 2021 -
Content ArticleIn this blog for the British Journal of General Practice comment and opinion website, BJGP Life, GP Will Mackintosh discusses the impact of health inequalities on patients' ability to play an active role in their care. He calls for training for all GPs to understand the constraints and pressures that may be affecting their patients, so that they can better assess the causes of health issues and therefore treat them more effectively. The article examines concepts of freedom for both GP and patient, and argues that a purely evidence-based approach does not help patients from deprived backgrounds overcome health issues. The author highlights that GPs operate in a 'grey zone' between the medical and the non-medical, and argues that this means they are well placed to understand and help tackle the root causes of health disparities.
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Content ArticleThe Royal College of Physicians has published a position paper setting out why we need an explicit cross-government strategy to reduce health inequalities to improve population health and address avoidable differences in health access and outcomes between certain groups. Health inequality was a problem before COVID-19 – with a gap in healthy life expectancy between the richest and poorest areas of around 19 years – but the pandemic has tragically demonstrated how these inequalities can have an impact in just a matter of weeks.
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Content Article
This blog explores men's mental health – how men are reluctant to seek support when they are struggling, why the suicide rate is so high, what initiatives exist to encourage men to seek help and what more could be done.
