Ethnic groups with learning difficulties suffer lower life expectancy

• Aparna Sreevalsan
• 28 July, 2023

LEARNING DISABLED people from an ethnic minority background have life expectancies that are practically half that of their white counterparts, a new review has revealed.

The University of Central Lancashire, in partnership with Manchester Metropolitan University, Learning Disability England, and the Race Equality Foundation, conducted this thorough recommendations review, “We Deserve Better: Ethnic Minorities with a Learning Disability and Access to Healthcare,” which was commissioned by the NHS Race and Health Observatory.

The survey report published on Tuesday (25) shows persons with learning difficulties from ethnic minorities typically live to be 34 years old, compared to 62 years for those from white backgrounds.

Former British Medical Association (BMA) council chair Dr Chaand Nagpaul told Eastern Eye that the report’s conclusions require an “urgent” government probe.

“It has been long known that people with learning disabilities face and suffer disadvantage when it comes to accessing health care and also having health promotional and prevention support,” said Nagpaul, now a board member at the NHS Race and Health Observatory.

“However, what this study has highlighted is how patients with learning disability from black and ethnic minority backgrounds have a scale of disadvantage in terms of life expectancy at a stark and shocking level compared to white people with learning disabilities.

“This is a statistic that demands proper investigation and understanding as to the root causes of why there should be such race disparities in a group of people who are already suffering disadvantage.”

The review, which covers the previous two decades, provides a thorough understanding of how persons with learning disabilities from Black, South Asian (of Indian, Pakistani, or Bangladeshi descent), and minority ethnic backgrounds access and use healthcare services.

It also encapsulates the absence of appropriate modifications and the disregard for individual requirements.

Some of the challenges were language hurdles, cultural and religious intolerance, a lack of information in an accessible manner, and a lack of information throughout transitional care in the hospital and at home.

Recommendations made in the review are:

• More policies to make services better.
• More research to know more about people with a learning disability from different ethnic groups.
• Healthcare services to understand different situations and treat fairly.
• Better instructions for doctors to have the right information about ethnicity.