Mini Kaur Mangat is a Patient Engagement specialist with over a decade of successful experience in the NHS and commercial health sectors. She has a passion for addressing health inequalities and social values; understanding the importance of patients being involved in their own care, self-care, and wellness. She has considerable experience in consultation within the MSK field and has a track record of delivering high standards in patient engagement. Mini has worked with many community groups and has a specialist interest in working with seldom heard groups.
Mini is an elected member of Local Government and serves as a District Councillor at Warwick District Council, she is Chair of the Council’s Health & Community Protection Programme Advisory Board. Mini has vast experience in Equality, Diversity & Inclusion, she campaigns for Equity and Human Rights and is Chair of Warwick District Council’s Task & Finish Group addressing Race Equality.
The pandemic has shone a light on inequalities, highlighting an urgent need to strengthen action to prevent and manage ill health, particularly in ethnically diverse communities. Without fully understanding the experiences of those within these groups, however, there’s a danger that discussions about such needs are rhetoric only, that ‘inequality’ is just another healthcare buzzword and that the same conversations will still be ongoing in five years’ time.
Mini Kaur Mangat, Head of Patient Engagement at Connect Health speaks to Asian Voice about healthcare inequalities.
What is the root cause of health inequalities in ethnic minorities, especially among women?
Discrimination due to a severe lack of culturally competent and culturally appropriate services. People, and particularly women, are suffering in silence because both physical and mental health services can be so hard to reach for ethnically diverse communities. This in turn creates a further gap in health outcomes and results in inequity. There must be a wider discussion about the health and well-being needs of ethnically diverse communities. Discrimination within the structures of health services is also a cause of health inequalities. A great definition taken from BMJ 2001 is 'Health Inequalities are avoidable inequalities that are unfair or unjust' - which in my view shows that we all have a responsibility to tackle them. Stigma and barriers within family and community can also play a part.
What according to you are the right approach and immediate solution to safeguard such people who're unable to access healthcare services?
Putting BAME people at the heart of health services would help and listen to the needs of ethnic minority communities and build solutions together, with the people and not designing pathways and expecting people to fit in. If we build a culturally competent healthcare system, only then will we truly be able to reach all communities.
Is there any mechanism by which women with Long Covid, mental health issues, disabilities, and other lifestyle or life-threatening diseases can seek proper access to healthcare? Where are the glitches?
I think we must remember that it is the lack of mechanisms that is the issue, it’s really important that the healthcare providers work to remove the barriers that exist within their structures and listen to the ethnically diverse communities to deliver solutions that are tailor-made to the different groups within the Black Asian Minority Ethnic communities. It is important that health and wellbeing service providers have the cultural competence to understand what it is like to live in an ethnic minority community, to break down these barriers to access and really have the understanding to be able to support people
What can families do at a fundamental level to remove the roadblock of stigma while health inequalities continue to engulf so many ethnic minority people?
Community is a big feature, particularly in my community, I am of a South Asian community, and the stigmas of keeping physical and more so mental illness a secret are still there. There is great work being done by voluntary and community organisations up and down the country to raise more awareness and encourage people to get help if they need and signposting.. even when the issue of stigma is worked on and removed and a person is taking steps to access health services, service providers must ensure a seamless process which is culturally competent and right for them to get the help they need. It is so important that BAME patients are not let down at this point when they have worked so hard to get to the point of asking for help.
Is there enough help at a linguistic level for women whose first language may not be English?
There are resources out there in different languages, multi-lingual non-stigmatising communication is important, however merely translating material is not always the answer, the resources and professionals must be culturally competent and appropriate.
