Why is racism rife in the NHS?: Without immigrant staff, the health service would come to a standstill. So why aren't BME health professionals treated fairly?
The NHS was physically and metaphorically built with the help of immigrant workers and professionals from across the world. Thousands of doctors immigrated from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the 1950s, 60s and 70s, recruited by a health service afflicted by an acute postwar shortage of medical staff. Many settled here permanently despite intending to return home, because the value of their contribution was recognised.
The NHS thrives on equality and diversity. In some specialities, such as general practice, we know that almost a third of the emerging workforce are overseas-qualified. Without these immigrant workers the NHS would come to a standstill.
Despite this, many international medical graduates (IMGs) who have been the workhorses of the NHS, are over-represented in the lowest paid, least glamorous specialties in the least popular parts of the country. Some of them have faced racism, less recognition for awards and slow promotion in their working life. To add insult to injury, IMGs from a BME background are likely to be dealt with more harshly by the General Medical Council; they are three times more likely to be charged with serious professional misconduct, and therefore have a higher rate of receiving high-impact decisions than their white counterparts.
IMGs from south Asian backgrounds are much more likely to fail certain components of the new compulsory assessment for all doctors wishing to become GPs, the MRCGP, than UK white graduates. It would be hard to argue that this marked difference in failure rates is a matter of chance, diligence or intelligence.
To its credit the Royal College of General Practitioners is looking into the disparities. In my view, an important first step is to compile accurate data to enable proper, detailed, evidence-based analysis of exam outcomes among different groups. , before being put in an envelope.
The concept of institutional racism remains highly contested and emotionally charged.
A survey commissioned by the Department of Health in 2000 found half of frontline NHS BME staff had been victims of racial harassment in the previous 12 months; since then, reports of racism in healthcare have increased.
In 2001, a King's Fund report, Racism in Medicine, generated powerful debate after finding that bullying and discrimination were a daily part of life for black and Asian doctors. Then in 2003, a British Medical Association survey revealed more than 80% of minority ethnic doctors believed that their ethnicity had a negative effect on their career advancement. In 2004 the Royal College of Psychiatrists accepted that racism existed in the NHS and in their own institution.
I am one of the lucky ones. Having trained in India, I went on to have a successful and rewarding 25 year career as a GP and became chair of Tameside and Glossop primary care trust. I also led an active role in the British Medical Association and am currently deputy chair of BMA council. One of the proudest moments of my life was being awarded an OBE for services to the NHS.
However, many black and minority ethnic communities' experiences of the health service are quite different to mine, and to those of the white British population. A survey of every NHS trust and primary care trust in England proves BME workers are grossly under-represented among senior management but disproportionately involved in disciplinaries, grievances, bullying and harassment cases and capability reviews.
The Department of Health should also take a more active lead to tackle racism and discrimination. For those who are committed to a lifelong career in the NHS, I would like to see fairness, transparency and equity regardless of whatever stage they are at in that career. Guardian Professional.
The NHS was physically and metaphorically built with the help of immigrant workers and professionals from across the world. Thousands of doctors immigrated from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka during the 1950s, 60s and 70s, recruited by a health service afflicted by an acute postwar shortage of medical staff. Many settled here permanently despite intending to return home, because the value of their contribution was recognised.
The NHS thrives on equality and diversity. In some specialities, such as general practice, we know that almost a third of the emerging workforce are overseas-qualified. Without these immigrant workers the NHS would come to a standstill.
Despite this, many international medical graduates (IMGs) who have been the workhorses of the NHS, are over-represented in the lowest paid, least glamorous specialties in the least popular parts of the country. Some of them have faced racism, less recognition for awards and slow promotion in their working life. To add insult to injury, IMGs from a BME background are likely to be dealt with more harshly by the General Medical Council; they are three times more likely to be charged with serious professional misconduct, and therefore have a higher rate of receiving high-impact decisions than their white counterparts.
IMGs from south Asian backgrounds are much more likely to fail certain components of the new compulsory assessment for all doctors wishing to become GPs, the MRCGP, than UK white graduates. It would be hard to argue that this marked difference in failure rates is a matter of chance, diligence or intelligence.
To its credit the Royal College of General Practitioners is looking into the disparities. In my view, an important first step is to compile accurate data to enable proper, detailed, evidence-based analysis of exam outcomes among different groups. , before being put in an envelope.
The concept of institutional racism remains highly contested and emotionally charged.
A survey commissioned by the Department of Health in 2000 found half of frontline NHS BME staff had been victims of racial harassment in the previous 12 months; since then, reports of racism in healthcare have increased.
In 2001, a King's Fund report, Racism in Medicine, generated powerful debate after finding that bullying and discrimination were a daily part of life for black and Asian doctors. Then in 2003, a British Medical Association survey revealed more than 80% of minority ethnic doctors believed that their ethnicity had a negative effect on their career advancement. In 2004 the Royal College of Psychiatrists accepted that racism existed in the NHS and in their own institution.
I am one of the lucky ones. Having trained in India, I went on to have a successful and rewarding 25 year career as a GP and became chair of Tameside and Glossop primary care trust. I also led an active role in the British Medical Association and am currently deputy chair of BMA council. One of the proudest moments of my life was being awarded an OBE for services to the NHS.
However, many black and minority ethnic communities' experiences of the health service are quite different to mine, and to those of the white British population. A survey of every NHS trust and primary care trust in England proves BME workers are grossly under-represented among senior management but disproportionately involved in disciplinaries, grievances, bullying and harassment cases and capability reviews.
The Department of Health should also take a more active lead to tackle racism and discrimination. For those who are committed to a lifelong career in the NHS, I would like to see fairness, transparency and equity regardless of whatever stage they are at in that career. Guardian Professional.
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