Healthwatch Ealing Health Inequalities Access Report

Health inequalities are the preventable, unfair, and unjust differences in health status between groups, populations, or individuals. These inequalities arise from the unequal distribution of social, environmental, and economic conditions within societies.

Healthwatch Ealing note that ‘BAME’ as a catch-all term can become its own barrier, as it covers a wide range of ethnicities which do not neatly fit under this umbrella definition. The experiences of one community group are not representative of other community groups or individuals.

 The aim of this work was to further understand BAME health inequalities in the borough of Ealing following the publication of ‘Beyond the data: understanding the impact of COVID-19 on BAME groups’ by Public Health England and to build on our previous research ‘The Impact of COVID-19’. 

Identifying and understanding the root causes of racial inequalities in care is crucial. However, what is equally important – particularly for Ealing with a BAME population of 53.7% - is to use this knowledge to explore the ways in which swift and efficient change can be made to alleviate and remove these inequalities.

In addition, this research aimed to produce tangible actions that can be taken by all health and social care colleagues in the borough to alleviate racial disparities in the borough. Working in collaboration with several local community organisations that support BAME individuals and borough Primary Care services, Healthwatch Ealing gathered rich insight into the views and experiences of 50 residents.

From 1st October 2021 to 30th November 2021, Healthwatch Ealing conducted outreach work in the borough of Ealing, predominately in the areas of Acton and Southall. This small-scale qualitative project involved speaking to 50 residents through conducting one-to-one interviews both over the phone and in-person as well as through a series of in-person focus groups that were in line with government guidelines that were in place at the time.

Through these conversations and subsequent analysis, the following common themes were identified: Access to Information; Access to Quality Care; Lack of Integrated Care and Support; and Lack of Trust in Health & Social Care.

The findings are discussed in more detail in the main body of the report, which is complete with key findings and recommendations.