We Deserve Better report
This week saw the launch of an important new report ‘We Deserve Better: Ethnic minorities with a learning disability and access to healthcare’.
The report was commissioned by the NHS Race and Health Observatory. The work has been undertaken by the University of Central Lancashire, in collaboration with Manchester Metropolitan University, Learning Disability England and the Race Equality Foundation.
Lewisham Speaking Up supported people with learning disabilities to take part in focus groups for the report. Our People’s Parliament rep Aisha went to meetings to help make the report and appears in the video which you can watch on You Tube. Scroll down to see the video!
You can now read the full report on the NHS webpage.
The report highlights some serious health inequalities experienced by people with learning disabilities from ethnic minorities.
What needs to happen?
The headline findings for us are:
- People from ethnic minorities with a learning disability experience worse health care and, ultimately, die at a younger age.
- There should be work to make sure co-production with people with learning disabilities includes people from ethnic minorities
- Co-production should be meaningful and properly funded
- Health services must make the correct reasonable adjustments so that people can access appropriate care
- Health and social care commissioners should fund and work with self advocacy groups and other voluntary organisations
- Health services need to get better at collecting information on the ethnicity of people with learning disabilities
- More research needs to be done to find out why people from ethnic minorities with a learning disability experience worse health care
- There should be more discussions on racism and discrimination with people with learning disabilities
There is much more in the report and we would suggest that as many people as possible read it!
Here is the YouTube video featuring Aisha, one of our People’s Parliament reps:
