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Showing results for tags 'Health inequalities'.
Found 1,211 results
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Content ArticleThis systematic review conducted for the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) aimed to examine the evidence on whether and how healthcare algorithms exacerbate, perpetuate or reduce racial and ethnic disparities in access to healthcare, quality of care and health outcomes. It also examined strategies that mitigate racial and ethnic bias in the development and use of algorithms. The results showed that algorithms potentially perpetuate, exacerbate and sometimes reduce racial and ethnic disparities. Disparities were reduced when race and ethnicity were incorporated into an algorithm to intentionally tackle known racial and ethnic disparities in resource allocation (for example, kidney transplant allocation) or disparities in care (for example, prostate cancer screening that historically led to Black men receiving more low-yield biopsies).
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Content ArticleThis leaflet aims to help people with type 1 diabetes decide between the different technologies available to manage diabetes. It contains summaries of devices available and infographics outlining eligibility criteria for continuous glucose monitors (CGM), insulin pumps and hybrid-closed loop systems. Diabetes care is one of the five clinical areas of focus for integrated care boards and partnerships to achieve system change and improve care as part of Core20Plus5 for children and young people with the aim to increase access to real-time continuous glucose monitors and insulin pumps across the most deprived quintiles and from ethnic minority backgrounds.
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EventuntilLondon inspire Programme (LiP) is a ground-breaking programme which was specifically developed to raise awareness and promote targeted health interventions aimed at reducing disparities faced by Black people in London. This involves working closely with Black Caribbean & African leaders and health professionals, to explore an asset-based approach to mobilising the community and improve health outcomes. This event will be an opportunity to bring together key stakeholders to explore community-based approaches and how health systems could collaborate to create sustained health improvement. The event will celebrate what is working well, share learning, and create opportunities for reflection resulting in a call to action and inclusive leadership to improving the health of Black Londoners. The Summit will feature speakers renowned for their contributions to health equity and advocates with expertise in addressing health disparities within Black communities. A special focus will be given to voices from the Black Caribbean and African community, healthcare professionals, community leaders, researchers, and lived experiences. This diversity of perspectives aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the challenges and opportunities to reducing health inequalities at system and community levels. Confirmed keynote speakers include: Prof Bola Owolabi Prof Kevin Fenton CBE Dr Marie Gabriel Dr Habib Naqvi OBE Register for the event
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News Article
UK has some of worst cancer survival rates in developed world
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
The UK has some of the worst cancer survival rates in the developed world, according to new research. Analysis of international data by the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce found that five-year survival rates for lung, liver, brain, oesophageal, pancreatic and stomach cancers in the UK are worse than in most comparable countries. On average, just 16% of UK patients live for five years with these cancers. Out of 33 countries of comparable wealth and income levels, the UK ranks as low as 28th for five-year survival of both stomach and lung cancer, 26th for pancreatic cancer, 25th for brain cancer and 21st and 16th for liver and oesophageal cancers respectively. The six cancers account for nearly half of all common cancer deaths in the UK and more than 90,000 people are diagnosed with one of them in Britain every year. The taskforce calculated that if people with these cancers in the UK had the same prognosis as patients living in countries with the highest five-year survival rates – Korea, Belgium, the US, Australia and China – then more than 8,000 lives could be saved a year. Anna Jewell, the chair of the Less Survivable Cancers Taskforce, said: “People diagnosed with a less survivable cancer are already fighting against the odds for survival. If we could bring the survivability of these cancers on level with the best-performing countries in the world then we could give valuable years to thousands of patients. “If we’re going to see positive and meaningful change then all of the UK governments must commit to proactively investing in research and putting processes in place so we can speed up diagnosis and improve treatment options.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 11 January 2023 -
Content Article
MBRRACE-UK: Maternal mortality 2020-2022
Patient Safety Learning posted an article in Maternity
MBRRACE have released their latest UK maternal mortality figures. The maternal death rate in 2020-22 was 13.41 per 100,000 maternities. This is significantly 53% higher than the rate of 8.79 deaths per 100,000 maternities in the previous three year period (2017-19). -
EventuntilThis online conference hosted by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is free of charge to RCGP members and £200 for non-members. This is the first in a 2-part series of one-day conferences addressing clinical issues arising from health inequalities and demonstrating how GPs can positively influence health inequalities as practitioners and community leaders. Health inequalities are differences in health across the population and between different groups in society that are systematic, unfair and avoidable. General Practice, with its unrivalled access to the heart of communities, has a key role in addressing both causes and consequences of health inequalities in the UK. General Practice is a diverse profession caring for multiple patient populations and the aim of the conference is to move from conversations to actions, improving patient care in these communities. This programme was put together by RCGP Officers, Faculty Education Leads and expert speakers, who are participating throughout the day and will include examples of best practice, relevant guidance and links to useful resources. Learning objectives: Understand the evidence linking ethnicity, protected characteristics, and health outcomes Acknowledge minority patients' perspectives of health and illness Promote the best clinical management within primary care Promote partnerships working with relevant organisations and community assets to improve patient care Areas to be covered: Incorporating health inequalities into training portfolios Migrant health and asylum seekers in hotels Black women with period issues or fertility concerns Health in gypsy and traveller communities Language discrimination Ramadan clinical management Trans health Social prescribing as a tool for tackling health inequalities Mental health Improving the health and well-being for communities in deprived areas Keynote speaker: Dr Margaret Ikpoh, RCGP Vice Chair Professional Development Register for the conference
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EventuntilThis online conference hosted by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is free of charge to RCGP members and £200 for non-members. Health inequalities are differences in health across the population and between different groups in society that are systematic, unfair and avoidable. General Practice, with its unrivalled access to the heart of communities, has a key role in addressing both causes and consequences of health inequalities in the UK. General Practice is a diverse profession caring for multiple patient populations and the aim of this conference is to move from conversations to actions, improving patient care in these communities. The programme was put together by RCGP Officers, Faculty Education Leads and expert speakers, who are participating throughout the day and will include examples of best practice, relevant guidance and links to useful resources. Learning objectives: Understand the evidence linking ethnicity, protected characteristics, and health outcomes Acknowledge minority patients' perspectives of health and illness Promote the best clinical management within primary care Promote partnerships working with relevant organisations and community assets to improve patient care Areas to be covered: Health inequalities in learning disabilities Health inequalities in South Asian women in the UK Exploring and remediating unconscious bias Tackling health inequalities in African and Caribbean communities Barriers to accessing health services for migrant and ethnic minorities patients Panel discussion: improving screening uptake in minority ethnic groups End of life care and bereavement Pain management in populations with high levels of health inequality Ethnicity and disease Issues affecting the LGBTQIA+ community Keynote Speaker: Professor Kamila Hawthorne MBE, Chair of Council, RCGP Register for the conference
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Content ArticleThis study published in BMJ Quality & Safety identified factors acting as barriers or enablers to the process of healthcare consent for people with intellectual disability and to understand how to make this process equitable and accessible. The study found that multiple reasons contribute to poor consent practices for people with intellectual disability in current health systems. Recommendations include addressing health professionals’ attitudes and lack of education in informed consent with clinician training, the co-production of accessible information resources and further inclusive research into informed consent for people with intellectual disability. Related reading on the hub: Accessible patient information: a key element of informed consent
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EventuntilThis breakfast with Professor Bola Owolabi will look at taking a practical, whole system approach to action on health inequalities. Helping system leaders to understand their role in addressing health inequalities. Differentiating between health inequalities, often determined by long-term social and economic issues – and healthcare inequalities in relation to access and outcomes from NHS services. Practicalities for ICSs in enabling core20PLUS5 vision and having tangible impact on health inequalities. The role of business in addressing health inequalities and broader corporate responsibility. Creating actionable insights from the vast pool of health data available. If you are interested in attending, contact lee.davies@publicpolicyprojects.com
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Content ArticleThis report by the Institute of Health Equity (IHE) highlights that a million people in 90% of areas in England lived shorter lives than they should have between 2011 and the start of the pandemic. Using several published ONS data sources, calculations were made from the number of excess deaths in the decade from 2011 in England. The report's findings add to evidence about the cumulative impact of regressive funding cuts associated with austerity on the population's health. As a result of austerity, life expectancy failed to increase, and actually fell for women in the 10% of poorest areas, and health inequalities widened.
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Content ArticleIn this article for The Lancet, Professor Gagandeep Kang from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation examines what the story of rotavirus vaccine development in India can tell us about the opportunities, the necessary enabling environment and the challenges of creating products to improve global health. He highlights that although multiple successful vaccines were developed during the Covid-19 pandemic—in quantities that were inconceivable at the start of the pandemic—vaccine nationalism trumped the efforts of WHO, which established a prioritisation framework for vaccination of clinically vulnerable populations. The COVAX scheme was not successful in its aim to ensure that vaccines could be financed and distributed equitably around the world. This experience of delayed and low access to vaccines has led to calls for reparative justice and for moving away from short-term fixes of product donations to support local or regional vaccine manufacturing. Sharing intellectual property and enhancing regional capacity are now framed as moral imperatives against colonialism, and the development of the rotavirus vaccine provides lessons on how this can be achieved.
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EventuntilIn this webinar hosted by NHS Providers, attendees will: learn about the different models of co-production with communities and how these could be applied to the work at your trust hear about the value of working with underserved communities to understand their experiences accessing healthcare services and how this can contribute to the wider agenda of reducing health inequalities discuss with others the enablers and blockers that trusts face when seeking to engage with communities in their service design and development. This webinar is open to NHS board members and health inequalities leads from trusts, foundation trusts and ICBs. Confirmed panel Louise Ansari – chief executive, Healthwatch England Keymn Whervin – head of experience, National Voices Sarah Balchin – director of community engagement and experience, NHS Solent Book a place at the webinar
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Content ArticleThe maternal mortality rate (MMR) in the United States continues to increase despite medical advances and is exacerbated by stark racial disparities. Black women are disproportionately affected and are three times more likely to experience a pregnancy-related death (PRD) compared to Non-Hispanic White (NHW) women. Keisha E. Montalmant and Anna K. Ettinger carried out a literature review to examine the racial disparities in the United States' MMR, specifically among pregnant Black women. The review highlights that maternal health disparities for Black women are further impacted by both structural racism and racial implicit biases. Cultural competence and educational courses targeting racial disparities among maternal healthcare providers (MHCP) are essential for the reduction of PRDs and pregnancy-related complications among this target population. Additionally, quality and proper continuity of care require an increased awareness surrounding the risk of cardiovascular diseases for pregnant Black women.
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Content ArticlePrisoners have a right to the same standards of healthcare available to people in the community, and although we might suspect that people in prisons don't always receive the care they need, this is a difficult issue to get at through research. So how can we meaningfully compare hospital use between those in prison and those who are not? Miranda Davies and Eilís Keeble used a novel matched control methodology to show that prisoners use services less than people with similar health characteristics who are not incarcerated.
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News ArticlePeople in some more rural areas are missing out on specialist treatments they should be getting, while Londoners are receiving a lot more than their “fair share”, new NHS England figures suggest. NHS England has suggested the main cause is “systematic shortfalls in access [in] remote communities”, leaving “unmet need” for specialised services in these areas. However other factors, including coding and reporting practices, year-to-year fluctuation, and weaknesses in the formula, are also likely to be confusing the picture, sources said. The variation is being uncovered now because NHSE is preparing to fund many specialised services via allocations to integrated care boards. These allocations will be based on estimates of their populations’ healthcare needs, rather than NHSE negotiating payments directly with provider trusts – as it has since 2013. Read full story (paywalled) Source: HSJ, 3 January 2023
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Content ArticleIn this episode, Ruth Robertson explores how the NHS elective care waiting list can be managed in a way that improves health equity with Dr Mark Ratnarajah, UK Managing Director at C2-Ai, Sharon Brennan, Director of Policy and External Affairs at National Voices and Dr Polly Mitchell, Post Doctoral Research Fellow in Bioethics and Public Policy at King’s College London.
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Content Article
This is part of our series of Patient Safety Spotlight interviews, where we talk to people working for patient safety about their role and what motivates them. Sonia talks to us about how her role at NHS Confederation helps her understand the issues facing NHS staff and why she decided to start drawing graphics to communicate important information to patients and staff. -
Content ArticleThe Maternal, Newborn and Infant Clinical Outcome Review Programme has published an MBRRACE-UK Perinatal confidential enquiry report on a comparison of the care of Black and White women who have experienced a stillbirth or neonatal death. It is based on deaths reviewed in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, for the period between 1 July 2019 and 31 December 2019. The overall findings of this enquiry were based on the consensus opinion of panel members concerning the quality of care provided for the 36 Black and 35 White mothers and their babies. This enquiry was developed to try and identify any differences in the quality of care provided to women of Black ethnicity compared with their White counterparts, and forms the main focus of this report. As such, the recommendations are targeted at trying to ensure equity for the quality of care provision for both Black and White mothers and their babies.
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Content ArticleThe Maternal, Newborn and Infant Clinical Outcome Review Programme has published an MBRRACE-UK Perinatal confidential enquiry report that compares the care of Asian and White women who have experienced a stillbirth or neonatal death. It is based on deaths reviewed in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, for the period between 1 July 2019 and December 2019. The overall findings of this enquiry were based on the consensus opinion of panel members concerning the quality of care provided for 34 Asian and 35 White mothers and their babies. This enquiry was developed to try and identify any differences in the quality of care provided to women of Asian ethnicity compared with their White counterparts, and forms the main focus of this report. As such, the recommendations are targeted at trying to ensure equity for the quality of care provision for both Asian and White mothers and their babies.
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Content ArticleIn 2022 the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the CMS National Quality Strategy (NQS), an ambitious long-term initiative that aims to promote the highest quality outcomes and safest care for all. This document gives an overview of the strategy, using infographics to explain its four priority areas: Outcomes and alignment Equity and engagement Safety and resiliency Interoperability and scientific advancement
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Content ArticleIn this article for the Byline Times, Saba Salman highlights the results of the latest NHS-funded annual review of deaths among people with learning disabilities. The report lays bare how people with learning disabilities are less likely to survive health problems that are preventable and treatable than those without learning disabilities. Researchers at King’s College London, the University of Central Lancashire and Kingston University London reviewed the deaths of 3,648 people with a learning disability. Overall, almost half died an avoidable death, compared to two in 10 in the general population. The median age of death in was 63 years, which is around 20 years less than for people without learning disabilities.
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News Article
‘No doctor in the country will touch you’: how the NHS is failing FGM survivors
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
At least 137,000 women in the UK live with the painful and traumatic consequences of cutting, but there is no provision for reconstructive surgery. In May 2023, Shamsa Araweelo was in the A&E department of a London hospital in excruciating pain. It wasn’t the first time she had sought urgent treatment for the gynaecological damage caused by the female genital mutilation (FGM), or cutting, forced on her as a six-year-old. In fact, this was one of many such visits to emergency departments that Araweelo had made in her desperate attempt to find a surgeon who could help undo the damage done to her as a child and which has caused her so much pain and trauma as an adult. Araweelo says that in A&E she was told that she had severe nerve damage and that it could be reversed through reconstructive surgery. But not in the UK. “No doctor in the country will touch you, because you are an FGM survivor,” Araweelo says she was told. “I felt no compassion, no respect. Only in London did they tell me they wished they had the appropriate training to help me, and it breaks my heart. We are not valued in the UK.” Current NHS rules state that if a health practitioner suspects a patient has been cut, they must report the case to the police and complete a safeguarding risk assessment to determine whether a social care referral is required. Guidance for GPs also recommends referrals for mental health issues related to FGM or referrals to uro-gynaecological specialist clinics. Araweelo says that in all the years she has sought help she has never been offered any kind of support from medical professionals. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 21 December 2023 -
Content ArticleThe ethnicity data gap pertains to three major challenges to address ethnic health inequality: Under-representation of ethnic minorities in research Poor data quality on ethnicity Ethnicity data not being meaningfully analysed. These challenges are especially relevant for research involving under-served migrant populations in the UK. This study in BMC Public Health aimed to review how ethnicity is captured, reported, analysed and theorised within policy-relevant research on ethnic health inequities. The authors concluded that the multi-dimensional nature of ethnicity is not currently reflected in UK health research studies, where ethnicity is often aggregated and analysed without justification. Researchers should communicate clearly how ethnicity is operationalised for their study, with appropriate justification for clustering and analysis that is meaningfully theorised.
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News Article
Patients’ experiences of disease should be taken more seriously, says study
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Health experts say more attention should be given to patients’ experiences after research found multiple examples of their insights being undervalued. A study led by the University of Cambridge and King’s College London found clinicians ranked patient self-assessments as the least important when making diagnostic decisions. Ethnicity and gender were felt to influence diagnosis, particularly a perception that women were more likely to be told their symptoms were psychosomatic. Male clinicians were more likely to say that patients overplay symptoms. The findings prompted calls for clinicians to move away from the “doctor knows best attitude” when caring for patients. One patient shared the feeling of being disbelieved as “degrading and dehumanising”, and added: “I’ll tell them my symptoms and they’ll tell me that symptom is wrong, or I can’t feel pain there, or in that way.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 18 December 2023 -
Content ArticleMonica is a project manager for the South East London Local Maternity and Neonatal System. In this interview she talks about her work, including setting up the perinatal pelvic health service across south east London.
