The NHS Race and Health Observatory has announced a landmark agreement with the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) to address persistent and systemic ethnic health inequalities.
This partnership supports the strategic objectives of both organisations to tackle unwarranted health inequalities for Black, Asian, and ethnic minority patients by sharing research and practices.
Over the next two years, the Observatory will work with NICE to combine expertise and evidence-based approaches to benefit diverse communities. The collaboration will focus on de-biasing clinical guidance across five key areas:
- Maternal and neonatal health
- Mental health
- Genomics
- Sickle cell
- Hypertension
The partnership aims to ensure that new clinical guidance addresses inequalities and avoids potential racial or other biases that could impact patient treatment, safety, and outcomes. The Observatory will provide guidance on NICE’s Equality and Health Inequalities Assessment (EHIA) processes and the development of new guidelines, incorporating insights from the lived experiences of patients from diverse communities.
Chief Executive of the NHS Race and Health Observatory, Professor Habib Naqvi, commented:
“Building an NHS fit for the future is central to the government’s Plan for Change. That is why we are going further and faster to identify and tackle avoidable inequalities that affect so many patients and communities across the country.
“Equitable healthcare is not just good for patients and their families, it also improves productivity and saves the NHS money. Our work to date clearly shows the historic failure to address health inequalities is coming at a high cost to patients, the economy, and to the NHS.
“I’m delighted to announce this landmark collaboration and look forward to working with NICE on improving patient experience and outcomes.”
This collaboration will also create opportunities to present real-world data, new projects, and approaches for addressing racial bias and health inequity through events, conferences, publications, and joint workshops. Public health insights gathered by the Observatory will inform future work with NICE.
NICE produces guidance for the NHS and wider health and care system, helping practitioners and commissioners deliver the best care while ensuring value for the taxpayer. The Observatory, established in 2021, tackles ethnic inequalities in healthcare access, experiences, and outcomes, as well as inequalities faced by Black and minority ethnic healthcare workers.
Image credit: iStock
