Exploration of current practice to reduce ethnic health inequalities within healthcare education

Migrant and ethnic minority communities often encounter challenges within healthcare systems. The need for change within healthcare systems to address ethnic health inequalities is therefore paramount. Education plays a pivotal role in shaping healthcare professionals’ approaches to practice, and so, understanding the content and delivery of healthcare curricula, and its reflection of diverse populations, is crucial.

Reports, including the Observatory’s Rapid Evidence Review, underscore the effects of colonialism and structural racism in healthcare, emphasising the imperative to address their impact in combating health inequalities. Although medical regulatory bodies highlight inclusive culture in the workforce, discrimination persists in clinical practice and curricula, which lack diversity and content on health inequalities. Healthcare curricula often lack teachings on anti-racism, which can lead to issues related to healthcare access, experience and outcomes for patients.

The Observatory and NHS England would like to commission an organisation to hold a series of discovery workshops with key stakeholders to understand current practices for reducing ethnic health inequalities within healthcare education. The Invitation to Tender calls for a number of methodologies to be employed and for the collation of case studies of good practice from diverse settings. These will help to identify drivers of change, key changes in curricula, anticipated benefits, challenges, and sustainability strategies.

The work should outline a set of actionable and targeted recommendations for change, contributing to the NHSE Educator Workforce Strategy Repository and supporting its implementation.

More information can be found in the Invitation to Tender PDF document here.

We welcome submissions from all interested organisations. Tender submissions should be made by Friday, May 31 2024.