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Editorial: British Journal of Occupational Therapy Special Collection on Race, Culture and Occupational Therapy

Rod Lambert, Ketan Dave, Sureshkumar Kamalakannan, Sankeetha Nadarajah, Lily Owens-Atkins, Odeth Richardson, Blaine Robin, Jou Yin Teo

British Journal of Occupational Therapy (BJOT)

Swansea University Author: Lily Owens-Atkins

Abstract

The UK Health Security Agency’s Health Inequalities in Health Protection (2025) report concludes that race and ethnicity remain among the strongest determinants of health outcomes in the United Kingdom. Earlier evidence from Public Health England (2018) also identified that differences in health out...

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Published in: British Journal of Occupational Therapy (BJOT)
Published: 2026
Online Access: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/epub/10.1177/03080226261429377
URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa72150
Abstract: The UK Health Security Agency’s Health Inequalities in Health Protection (2025) report concludes that race and ethnicity remain among the strongest determinants of health outcomes in the United Kingdom. Earlier evidence from Public Health England (2018) also identified that differences in health outcomes arise primarily from the social, economic, and environmental factors that shape people’s lives.People living in the most deprived areas face almost double the risk of emergency hospital admission for infectious diseases compared with those in the least deprived areas. Ethnic disparities are particularly acute: tuberculosis admission rates are reported as 29 times higher in people identified as Asian, 27 times higher in those identified as Indian, and 15 times higher in Black African groups compared with White British populations.NHS England data from 2025 similarly showed that people from the most disadvantaged communities, and those from Asian or Asian British backgrounds, are more likely to wait longer than 18 weeks for treatment than any other group. These inequalities affect the NHS, contributing an estimated £1.5 billion annually in avoidable emergency admissions.
College: Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences