Nottingham CityCare, the largest provider of community health care in the city, launched its Health Inequalities Framework in November last year. Judith Douglas, Director of Nursing, Allied Health Professionals and Quality, talks to us about the Framework’s importance and what it means for 2025 and beyond.
I'm incredibly proud of this milestone. Tackling inequalities is a top priority for CityCare, and it's central to our efforts in providing quality community health care in the region.
We're at a crucial point in our mission to tackle inequalities in health care access. The Health Inequalities Framework is our launchpad, and last year’s Health Inequalities Conference highlighted some early achievements. This year, we're focused on turning these initial steps into strides – closing the gaps in health access among our city’s diverse communities.
The framework was launched alongside our new Patient Experience and Engagement Strategy. This strategy will help our colleagues throughout the organisation and across the system to collaborate more effectively with our communities, to co-design, co-produce, and deliver high-quality, accessible care for everyone.
When I think about patients like Terry Iles - please do read his story - I see the positive impact we're making. Consider the recent Pain Management programme led by Purba Bhattacharjee's team, with special sessions for South Asian women and the Polish community. And then there's Ann Belcher and the Transient Families Team, providing essential health care to those seeking asylum and the Traveller community.
These examples highlight the dedication of our services in addressing health care inequality within our communities. Still, we all agree there’s much more to do to bridge these gaps.
Nottingham’s Health and Wellbeing Board show us that, in England, the gap in healthy living between the richest and poorest areas is profound. Those in less affluent neighbourhoods face serious health issues much earlier in life, particularly among certain ethnic minority and marginalised groups.
Closer to home, life expectancy in Nottingham tells a sobering story. Many adults in our city can expect to live far fewer healthy years compared to other parts of the country, spending a sizeable portion of their lives in poor health.
But what stands out in Nottingham is the unwavering commitment and hard work of our CityCare teams. Despite financial constraints, our dedicated staff are making a real difference. Through community engagement and relentless effort, we are tackling these disparities head-on.
We believe that everyone deserves the opportunity to live a healthy and fulfilling life. It's this passion and dedication that drives us to continue working within our communities, making strides towards a brighter, healthier future for everyone.
Our work cannot stop here. We are urging our teams to identify projects using their service data and our new inclusivity self-assessment tool, The Maturity Matrix. It's crucial for our services to find ways to increase patient accessibility.
We must actively engage with patients and service users, especially those who have been left behind by health care inequality. It's time to close these gaps.
Our commitment to our community drives us to ensure that everyone has access to the care they need. This is more than a job – it's a mission to make a real difference in people's lives.
As Carolin Tomlinson says in her Health Inequalities reflections article: “We will be working in greater collaboration with other health providers across Nottingham and Nottinghamshire (and)… we will be able to deliver services which meet the needs of our patients and enable them broader options for engagement.”
If we can achieve this vision over the next few years, we will place ourselves in the best position to provide equitable, quality health care for our communities. This prospect is not just exciting – it’s achievable, and we’ve laid the groundwork for it.
The work we've already accomplished should fill us with confidence. Let's be brave as we step into 2025 and beyond, celebrating our successes together as a community. We've made significant steps in our commitment and have laid the foundation for continued progress and improvement.
Together, we can make a real difference, and that's something worth striding for.
Date published: 8 January 2025
