Inquiry into racial injustice in maternity care
Birthrights has published a report into its year-long inquiry into racial injustice in maternity care.
The inquiry heard testimony from women, birthing people, healthcare professionals and lawyers.
They outlined how systemic racism within maternity care can have a deep and devastating impact on basic rights in childbirth.
This jeopardises black and brown women and birthing people’s safety, dignity, choice, autonomy, and equality.
Systemic Racism, Not Broken Bodies makes a series of recommendations including decolonising maternity curriculums and guidance and making black and brown women decision-makers in their care and the wider maternity system.
#CareAboutMe campaign launch
PRSB has launched a year-long #CareAboutMe campaign.
The campaign aims to raise awareness of the About Me standard, the improvements it can make to quality of care and the positive impact it can have on people’s quality of life and health.
It supports the UK-wide commitment to person-centred care in the NHS and social care.
The unequal impact of the cost of living crisis
A new report by National Voices examines what the cost of living crisis means for people living with ill health.
It brings together data and case studies from National Voices members on the cost of living crisis and how this impacts the people and communities they serve.
Topics covered include cancer, Crohn's and colitis, kidney conditions, mental health, musculoskeletal conditions, older people and homelessness.
Several PIF members have contributed.
Study: Co-designed faith-based intervention for Muslim women to encourage screening uptake
A pilot study evaluates a co-designed, culturally tailored, faith-based online intervention to increase uptake of breast, colorectal and cervical screening in Scottish Muslim women.
Co-designed interventions included:
- A peer-led discussion of barriers to screening
- A health education session led by a healthcare provider
- Videos of Muslim women’s experiences of cancer or screening
- A religious perspective on cancer screening delivered by a female Alimah
Participants were positive about their experience, reported increased knowledge of screening, valued the multidimensional delivery of the intervention and appreciated the faith-based perspective.
They particularly liked the personal stories and input from a healthcare provider.
Authors concluded participatory and community-centred approaches can play an important role in tackling health inequalities in cancer and its screening.
Feasibility testing is needed to investigate effectiveness on a larger scale in a full trial.
Inquiry to examine government progress on NHS digital transformation
MPs have launched a new inquiry to examine government progress on achieving a digitally enabled health system across the NHS.
The inquiry will also consider the need to develop public trust, with polling suggesting a third of people are unconvinced about the long-term use of digital in the NHS.
Submissions on several key questions can be submitted until 10 June.
Physical activity and long term health conditions resources
A new report by The Richmond Group of Charities outlines what works to support people with long term conditions to be active.
It summarises findings from a partnership project with Sport England and PIF members Mind, Parkinson’s UK and MS Society.
There are recommendations for anyone funding, developing, delivering, and evaluating physical activity behaviour change projects for people with long term conditions.
The partnership has also developed a suite of Physical Activity and Long Term Conditions Resource Packs aimed at:
Fixing the digital divide for good
Good Things Foundation has launched a new strategy outlining how it plans to Fix the Digital Dive – For Good.
Two million households struggle to afford internet access in the UK today and 10 million adults lack the most basic digital skills.
By 2025, Good Things Foundation aims to engage one million people and support 5,000 Digital Inclusion Hubs across the nation.
It is asking other organisations to share its strategy and aims to help overcome the digital divide.
Researching Long Covid
The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) has published a summary of research studies on understanding, diagnosing and treating Long Covid.
Research areas include the causes of Long Covid, investigating symptoms including brain fog and breathlessness and finding treatments for the condition.
The summary also includes accounts from people with lived experience of Long Covid.
Study: Online peer support groups for adults with Long Covid
A new study aims to explore the roles online peer support groups take on and the impact they have on patients experiencing and recovering from Long Covid.
Interviews with online Long Covid support group users identified five main themes:
- Filling professional care gaps
- Societal awareness
- Engagement behaviour,
- Diversity
- Social connections
The author concluded, if used appropriately, online peer support groups could be immensely beneficial for patient wellbeing, beyond simply filling gaps in Long Covid care.
However, many groups take on more than they can manage and become potentially harmful.
Through prioritising patient voices, Long Covid care could be restructured to maximise peer support benefits within broader care structures.
Call to ensure Long Covid Strategy is co-produced
A group of key stakeholders has published a call to ensure Scotland’s Long Covid Strategy is co-produced and values lived experience.
The statement, published ahead of a Scottish Parliament debate on 19 May, calls on the Scottish Government to ensure it:
- Includes the voices of adults, children and young people with Long Covid
- Provides clear feedback loops on how lived experience will be used
- Designs communications to ensure they are fully accessible
- Ensures people living with Long Covid have equal access to clinical interventions, supported self management and social support, no matter where they live in Scotland
- Improves understanding and knowledge of Long Covid in the community
- Improves training to empower a range of professionals to better support people with Long Covid
The potential legacy of the pandemic on mortality
A new report says, if care pathways do not rapidly return to pre-pandemic levels, the pandemic will affect the standard of healthcare, morbidity and mortality across the UK for years to come.
The report by Covid Actuaries says, at this stage of the pandemic, the mortality impacts are shifting from direct to indirect.
Indirect impacts represent excess deaths due to stresses on the health system or changes in the health-seeking behaviour of individuals.
Analysing emerging data can help to identify the magnitude of these impacts and the extent to which they differ across the population.
Event: Public Research Involvement Forum
NIHR has launched a new series of Public Research Involvement Forums.
The forums are part of the Be Part of Research campaign.
They are open to patients, carers, members of the public and anyone else interested in understanding how public contributions to research are used and how people can get involved.
Each monthly forum is hosted by a member of the public currently involved in medical technology research and they loosely steer the conversation in a broad theme.
Individuals will be invited to respectfully share their experiences, concerns or ask any questions relating to the topic.