Healthcare for a better tomorrow

This year’s theme for Black Inclusion Week is ‘Empowered for change: Building a better future together’, and it’s an opportunity to reflect, from an organisational and individual level, on how we are collectively enacting positive change for better diverse healthcare provision.

The NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) report for 2023 showed a 6.1% rise in ethnic minority representation at very senior levels in management, and is a snapshot of where they are in addressing race inequalities throughout their workforce, particularly as almost half (47.5%) of their workforce (including doctors, dentists and consultants) and more than a third of nurses, midwives and health visitors are from BME backgrounds.

At eMed, we understand that having a diverse workforce has its benefits. Including driving innovation, with team members more likely to approach problems creatively and innovatively, and better meet the needs of a diverse patient population.

‘Having a diverse team can help companies better understand the needs of different patient populations and develop solutions that meet those needs’ Stanford 2020

In the UK, our diverse population means healthcare providers and HealthTech companies must be able to serve all population members effectively, thus Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) have become increasingly essential across HealthTech and MedTech.

We at eMed, are ourselves patients from diverse demographics, and this helps us consider those often underrepresented in digital innovation.

We are proud of our diversity at all levels of our organisation: Engineers, Digital Health clinicians, Associate Director of Pharmacy, Senior Clinical Pharmacist, Senior Clinical Risk Manager, Medical Director, Clinical Safety Officer & Clinical Health and Safety Director; and Associate Director of Governance, Risk and Quality. This is also reflected in our global leadership team and in our recruitment.

However, Black Inclusion Week gives us another opportunity to analyse, reflect and collectively act on how to improve BME representation, promotion and recognition at eMed. 

This year, our reflection of our HealthTech organisation finds itself on par with the NHS WRES report (2024). Although we have made progress, opportunities, challenges, and more work lies ahead, so we can collectively and responsibly shape inclusive digital healthcare, for a better tomorrow.

Lie Wah Johnson

Senior Clinical Risk Manager

eMed Healthcare UK

Ref 

• Stanford, Fatima Cody (2020), The Importance of Diversity and Inclusion in the Healthcare Workforce, Journal of the National Medical Association, Volume 112, Issue 3, Pages 247-249, Article The Importance of Diversity and Inclusion in the Healthcare Workforce accessed on 19 Apr 2024
• NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES)(2023)
• NHS Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES)(2024)