Charter for Change examines reasons for inequalities and sets out recommendations to improve diabetes care
Eli Lilly – in partnership with a steering group of diabetes experts – has launched the ‘Charter for Change’, calling on the NHS and healthcare bodies to activate change for minority ethnic groups living with diabetes.
The pandemic has made existing inequalities in healthcare and diabetes care starker, with 2.7 million diabetes screening tests for high-risk groups missed over a six-month period in 2020.
The Charter for Change examines reasons for inequalities experienced by people from Black African, Black Caribbean and South Asian communities, setting out targeted recommendations to improve care and outcomes.
“Inequity, sadly, is a reality of the experiences of many people living with diabetes in the UK today,” said Dr Joan St John, a contributor to the Charter for Change. “We need to do more to address barriers and improve care for people from minority ethnic groups. Health inequalities have been talked about for a number of years but we need to ensure that words are now translated into actions.”
Over 4.9 million people in the UK live with diabetes – around 1 in 16 within the population. Approximately 10% of the NHS budget goes on diabetes management. Inequality in diabetes care exists across the UK, particularly for those from Black African, Black Caribbean and South Asian backgrounds. These groups are at a greater risk of associated complications from diabetes than those from white backgrounds.
To combat this, Lilly has worked with a steering group of healthcare professionals, community group representatives and people living with diabetes to identify barriers to people from minority ethnic groups receiving equitable care and draw up recommendations to address them.
The recommendations include training on cultural competence to become integral in the development of healthcare professionals, more disaggregated ethnicity data to ensure that the NHS has a fuller picture of existing inequalities in diabetes care and set targets for the NHS to increase diversity among NHS decision-makers.
There is also an aim to increase trust, better reflect the populations and provide greater funding and resources throughout integrated care systems to address the needs of historically under-served groups.
