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Description
In this episode of CQC Connect, the podcast from the Care Quality Commission, Annabelle Stigwood, joint project lead, talks to Dr Faizan Ahmed, National Clinical Advisor at the CQC, and Dr Bola Olowabi, Director - Health Inequalities at NHS England and NHS Improvement.
They explore health inequalities and how they impact on the ability of GP practices to do their job. Our guests discuss what we mean by health inequalities, why it's so important to focus on them in health and social care, and the role of providers, systems and regulators in addressing them.
You can read the report on looking into the impact and experience of CQC regulation on ethnic minority-led GP practices on the CQC website: https://www.cqc.org.uk/publications/themed-work/ethnic-minority-led-gp-practices-impact-experience-cqc-regulation
Listen to more podcasts from the CQC: https://soundcloud.com/carequalitycommission
Find out more information about the CQC and how it regulates health and social care in England: https://www.cqc.org.uk/
A
Hello
and
welcome
to
cqc
connect
the
podcast
from
the
care
quality
commission.
My
name
is
annabot
stickwood
and
I'm
the
joint
lead
on
the
cqc's
inequality
project,
which
is
looking
into
the
concern
that
gp
practices
led
by
gps
from
an
ethnic
minority
background
receive
poorer
cqc
ratings
or
regulatory
outcomes.
So
this
is
our
second
podcast
on
the
project.
The
first
one
talked
about
how
the
project
came
about
and
what
our
aims
and
objectives
are
and
a
link
to
this
can
be
found
in
the
podcast
description.
A
I'm
joined
by
dr
fazan,
ahmed
national
clinical
advisor
for
the
cqc
in
primary
medical
services
and
integrated
care,
and
also
our
special
guest,
is
dr
bola
alawabi,
who
is
director
of
health
inequalities
at
nhs,
england
and
nhs
improvement
so
bola?
Could
you
start
by
briefly
explaining
what
we
mean
when
we
talk
about
health
inequalities
and
why
I
felt
focused
on
health
inequalities
in
health
and
social
care
is
so
important.
B
Thank
you
annabelle
for
having
me
it's
it's
great
to
join
you
on
the
podcast
today
to
discuss
this
really
important
subject
of
addressing
health
inequalities,
and
I
really
find
the
king's
funds.
Definition
of
health
and
equality
is
incredibly
helpful,
which
describes
health
inequalities
as
unfair
and
avoidable
differences
in
health
across
populations
and
between
different
groups
within
society.
B
I
find
it
a
very
useful
definition
because
it
firmly
asserts
that
health
inequalities
are
not
inevitable
and
also
it
gives
a
sense
of
hope
that
actually
we
can
do
something
about
them
and
then
moving
on
to.
Why
is
it
important
that
we
do
address
health
inequalities
both
in
the
dimensions
of
health
care
and
the
wider
determinants?
A
C
Thank
you,
annabel
for
having
me
on
to
to
speak
again
about
this
most
important
of
of
topic
matters.
It's
it's
lovely
to
hear
from
bola,
particularly
she's
got
very
much
a
can
do
attitude
in
it
and
that
very
much
chimes
with
with
with
the
response
that,
hopefully,
the
cqc
will
have
as
we
go
forward.
She
rightly
says
that
the
pandemic
has
served
in
two
ways.
One
two
very
much
brings
bring
forward
and
and
center
the
issue
around
health
inequalities,
and
why
determinants
that
that
lead
to
that?
A
B
Thank
you,
annabelle.
Just
building
on
fizen's
comments
there
looking
at
the
really
important
piece
of
work
that
you've
been
doing,
I
think
my
reflections
would
be
anchored
within
some
thoughts
about
the
roles
of
the
nhs
in
tackling
health
inequalities
and
we've
said
within
the
nhs
long-term
plan
that
we
can't
treat
our
way
out
of
health
and
equalities,
which
is
true,
but
that
is
not
an
absolution
of
responsibility.
B
So
when
many
other
organizations
and
services
for
whatever
reason
cease
to
exist,
the
nhs
tends
to
be
the
institution
that
remains
and
therefore
there
is
a
powerful
role
that
the
nhs
plays
as
an
anchor
institution
in
addressing
the
wider
determinants
of
health,
so
housing,
education,
employment,
household
income
and
within
that
space.
There
is
an
opportunity,
therefore,
for
the
nhs
to
work
with
other
system
partners
in
affecting
change
in
relation
to
those
wider
determinants.
C
Thank
you
bill
and,
as
before,
I
dive
into
that
question
and
bowler's
absolutely
right
about
how
rooted
the
nhs
is
within
our
communities,
and
we
mustn't
forget,
particularly
when
we're
referring
to
some
of
our
most
deprived
communities.
Often,
the
gp
service
is
very
much
the
front
face
of
provision
within
that
local
system.
C
C
It's
got
to
be
active
in
driving
up
the
quality
of
standards
across
the
system,
and
there
are.
There
are
ways
in
which
we
can
do
that.
We're
developing
our
new
inspection
methodology
based
on
our
new
strategy,
which
will
be
much
more
inclusive,
but
it
will
also
be
receptive
in
a
way
that
it
hasn't
done
before.
A
A
Part
of
that
is
in
relation
to
understanding
the
context
that
practices
working
in
areas
of
deprivation
are
working
in.
You
know
often
the
outcomes
of
their
patients
that
their
patients
don't
represent
the
national
profile
they're
often
in
have
poorer,
poorer
health
outcomes,
and
we
as
regulator.
We
need
to
understand
a
better
understanding
of
of
that
context,
and
then
we
need
to.
We
need
to
encourage
improvement
and,
through
understanding
that
context,
it
will
enable
us
to
to
better
work
with
with
our
system
partners
too,
to
encourage
improvement.
A
A
B
B
There's
something
about
capacity
being
able
to
build
the
capacity
to
respond
to
what
often
feels
like
the
most
important
day
job,
but
to
do
so
in
a
way
that
hardwires
tackling
health
inequalities
into
the
approach.
So
I
think
there
is
a
capacity
issue,
workforce
wise,
there's,
also
capability
building.
B
One
is
about
using
data
to
drive
improvement,
so
that
data
is
not
just
used
for
the
purposes
of
assurance,
which
is
our
traditional
relationship
with
data,
but
actually
building
capability
to
engage
with
data
as
a
way
of
driving
improvement,
whereby
we
actively
draw
virtuous
circles
of
data
whereby
the
data
gives
us
actionable
insight
of
what
we
can
do
and
those
insights
then
drive
interventions
and
from
those
interventions
we
achieve
improvement
and
intelligence
about
what
works
and
we
go
around
the
loop
again
and
then.
The
second
key
capability
is
a
strengths
based
approach.
B
I
think
that's
the
other
thing
in
terms
of
capability
building
and
I
think,
from
the
regulator's
point
of
view,
what
would
be
helpful
and
useful
to
providers
is
to
create
an
enabling
regulatory
environment
in
the
way
that
you've,
both
just
been
describing
and
what
does
that
enabling
environment?
Look
like
it
looks
like
what
you
were
saying:
annabelle,
a
contextualized
assessment
framework
that
recognizes
the
context
within
which
people
are
operating
and
may
account
for
some
of
the
things
that
we
find
on
inspection.
A
That
was
fabulous.
Thank
you
very
much
bowler.
I
am
I've
written
down
some
some
sort
of
of
what
you've
said
there.
I
I
love
the
enabling
regulatory
environment
and
an
encouraging
improvement
is
something
that
we
we
are
always
we
are
striving
striving
to
do
so.
Thank
you
so
much,
unfortunately,
that's
what
we've
got
time
for
today.
I
would
really
like
to
thank
thank
my
guests,
dr
fazan
ahmed
and
dr
bola
alabi.