Paper short abstract:

With a population of approximately 70 million people living in the UK, we are witnessing a significant increase in diversity. This ethnographic study aims to engage with the Pakistani community and health professionals to collect their perspectives on palliative care.

Paper long abstract:

Although palliative care is a relatively recent addition to modern healthcare, it is becoming increasingly acknowledged as a vital component of all healthcare systems. The definitions of palliative care may vary, even within the same country, highlighting the evolving nature of this critical aspect of healthcare. World Health Organisation (WHO) defines palliative care as a crucial part of integrated, people-centred health services. However, there are still barriers limiting access to palliative care worldwide.

The number of British Pakistani Muslims in the UK has been on the rise. According to the Office for National Statistics, Pakistani Muslims constitute the second-largest ethnic minority population in the UK and the second-largest sub-group of British Asians. The available evidence suggests a growing disparity between the current model of end-of-life care and the health needs of religious and ethnic communities, particularly among Muslims. This is reflected in the poor uptake of advanced care planning and hospice services, including community-based services and on-site care.

This research will provide insights into the various factors, including religious, cultural, social, and economic, that contribute to the low uptake of palliative care in this demographic by adopting an ethnographic approach and interviewing medical practitioners, patients and their family members. Additionally, the study will explore the knowledge, attitudes, and practices of participants with the goal of enhancing the accessibility of palliative care services. By analysing empirical data, the research will generate evidence-based recommendations for improving the uptake, accessibility, and delivery of palliative care services.

Paper short abstract:

This paper looks at how stigma and systemic barriers impact the health of newly-arrived Roma migrants in the UK, especially during COVID-19. Community support is vital but strained, highlighting a need for inclusive health policies.

Paper long abstract:

This paper investigates the compounded impacts of stigma, racialisation, and health disparities among newly-arrived Roma communities in the UK, with a specific focus on the experiences of Bulgarian Roma communities amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. Using a combination of ethnographic narratives and participatory methods, the research highlights how structural inequalities and discrimination intersect to shape the lived experiences and health outcomes of Roma.

The paper draws on fieldwork conducted in Leicester and London, capturing how the pandemic has both heightened existing vulnerabilities and deepened socio-economic precarity among Roma populations. Systemic barriers—such as precarious employment, overcrowded housing, and limited access to healthcare— compound the challenges faced by these communities. The intersection of pandemic-induced challenges with broader sociopolitical dynamics, including the uncertainties surrounding Brexit, has further amplified the health inequalities affecting Roma migrants.

Through ethnographic vignettes, the paper underscores the crucial role of community, mutual, and familial support networks as survival mechanisms. However, it also reveals the strain on these informal resources, underscoring the fragility of such networks in the face of sustained socio-political and economic adversity. By examining individual and communal experiences, the paper illustrates the entanglements of socioeconomic status, ethnicity, and health, offering new insights into the impacts of structural stigma on the social determinants of health.

Paper short abstract:

Recognition of worrying racial disparities in maternal and newborn outcomes has prompted more routine, early interventions. Drawing on 2 research studies and risk theory, I will discuss how changes intended to address disparities in outcomes may engender neglect through treating PoC as risky bodies.

Paper long abstract:

After a long period of inattention, the disparities in maternal and infant health outcomes in Britain have become a focus of concern. Mortality monitoring systems show significant differences in risk of poor outcomes for Black and South Asian women and their babies and qualitative studies and surveys have highlighted less positive experiences of care. This is not a new phenomenon – in the late 1990s our research reported that these women had worse experiences of care or informed choices and that greater continuity of midwifery carer could help to address this problem. Now that disparity is being given attention in the media, in research and in health services, there has been a shift to increase medicalisation – for example, routine early induction of labour. The concept of maternal vulnerability is deployed with good intentions, but in-effect locates vulnerability in the person rather than in the structural and social context that shapes health. Activist groups have criticised medical actions to address disparities for treating people-of-colour (as well as poor women) as ‘risky bodies’ without consideration of the impact of socio-political environments on their health and wellbeing, or the impact of racism in everyday life and in care encounters. I will draw on two of our recent studies, one focused on induction of labour and the other on a group model of antenatal care, plus anthropological risk theory to discuss critically the direction of health actions to address disparities and ask, are the most important issues being neglected?

Paper short abstract:

Gender-based violence remains one of the most persistent human rights issues of our time. We presents the ethnographic fieldwork to understand and describe the experiences, motives and feelings of women who receive treatment for drug abuse and who have suffered violence in Andalusia.

Paper long abstract:

Gender-based violence remains one of the most persistent and pressing human rights issues of our time. In fact, it reinvents itself in different ways intersectionally based on age, rural or urban residence, or the type of psychoactive substance use of women who are assaulted. In the field of drug dependence, gender-based violence has been seen as a barrier to access to treatment for women in need of help. However, as research in this field advances, we believe that it is much more, because of the impact it has on the lives and health of women who use or abuse drugs and because of its bidirectional nature: women who are victims of gender violence abuse substances to cope with their discomfort and, in the opposite direction, having problems with drugs exposes them to abusing drugs to a greater extent than women who do not have them.

We presents the ethnographic fieldwork carried out in the context of a research project carried out in Andalucía (España). Through an ethnographic approach we have used life stories to collect data. Our aim has been to understand and describe the experiences, motives and feelings of women who receive treatment for drug abuse and who have suffered violence, in order to make the intervention more comprehensive and effective.

From direct contact with the women who have been interviewed in their treatment centres, I will reflect on the experience and personal feelings and also on the ethical problems with a population in extreme vulnerability.

Paper short abstract:

This paper examines healthcare disparities and migration patterns in rural Jharkhand, focusing on marginalized tribal communities. Using PRA and mixed method, it identifies healthcare gaps and advocates for community-driven solutions to reduce migration and improve local health outcomes.

Paper long abstract:

This paper explores the structural health disparities in Jharkhand, India, particularly among indigenous and marginalized rural communities. Despite global health initiatives such as the Health for All (HFA) and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), regions like Giridih, Deoghar, and Plamu continue to face significant healthcare challenges. This research uses Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and mixed method to engage community members in identifying the root causes of healthcare inequalities, focusing on factors like inadequate healthcare infrastructure, sanitation, access to clean water, and limited health literacy. The study also examines the impact of socio-cultural and linguistic barriers that hinder the effectiveness of healthcare programs in these regions. Through focus group discussions, in-depth interviews, and community mapping, the paper gathers both qualitative and quantitative data, providing a comprehensive view of local health needs and migration patterns driven by poor healthcare access. Pr

Paper short abstract:

This paper studies the fatal health challenges faced by urban indigenous women and aims to develop necessary health indicators for this community. It identifies gaps in policies, develops health indicators to reduce disparities and improve outcomes.

Paper long abstract:

This research paper delves into the fatal health challenges faced by Indigenous women in urban areas, particularly studying their physical, reproductive and mental health issues. In addition, this study identifies the social determinants of health that were developed specifically for this section and concentrates on their accessibility to general healthcare services. The distinct health inequalities faced by Urban Aboriginal communities are intensified by systemic and socio-cultural obstacles, such as sexism, racism, and restricted ambulatory access. A comprehensive review of the literature has made it possible to pinpoint important gaps in the data that are currently available regarding Indigenous health issues. It has also shed light on the ineffective implementation of the policies designed to improve the status of this population and underdeveloped status of social determinants of health. This research paper seeks to close these gaps by developing health indicators to track and enhance the health outcomes of this section. The study combines quantitative and qualitative approaches, methodically examining previous research and analyzing data to find patterns, connections, and discrepancies. The health indicators that were most prevalent, according to a thorough research, were education, employment, health care services, income, nutrition, and tobacco and alcohol consumption.

Paper short abstract:

Racism is a “profound” and “insidious” driver of health inequalities worldwide and poses a public health threat to millions of people”.

Paper long abstract:

I present the study in which hundreds of ethnic minority participants working in frontline health and social care roles shared shocking stories of racism at work. Racism impacts ethnic minorities and migrant staff working in NHS at all levels. The study aimed to explore and understand the stories and experiences of healthcare staff from ethnic minority backgrounds during the pandemic and previously in their working lives.

In this mixed-methods study, 353 ethnic minority background healthcare workers participated through questionnaire surveys and narrative interviews. The findings report that racism is prevalent in the health and social care sector and is usually unreported. In the case of reporting to authorities, 77.3% of respondents who complained about racism said they were not treated fairly. Incidents of racism were not individual and isolated; it was a culture that permeated daily practice. Our survey findings revealed that 59% of the survey respondents had experienced racism during their working lives, making it difficult to do their job; thus, 36% had left a job. Most participants reported that racial discrimination had impacted their physical and mental health and their patients’ care.

Our research underscores that the endemic culture of racism is a pertinent threat to public health in the UK; thus, it must be recognised and called out. There is a need to raise awareness and undertake interventions that identify and address racial discrimination and stigma, institutional racism and structural racism as distinct driving forces of inequalities and inequity in the social determinants of health.

Paper short abstract:

This study explores the lived experiences of three women and their families during their process of re-settlement in Norway.

Paper long abstract:

One of the women, Zhara, comments on her hair turning white, symbolizing the intense hardships, traumatic memories, and the ongoing pressures of adapting to a new environment, complicated by health challenges. Based on a year of ethnographic fieldwork, including participant observation and in-depth interviews with three refugee women and their families, the study provides an ethnographic approach to everyday life. Knowledge from the lived experiences among refugee women is not readily accessible. It requires the establishment of trust-based relationships; being present and being together with the interlocutors over time.

Refugees in Norway are a minority which are facing health disparities. They report poorer health compared to refugee men and the general population and are more vulnerable to Othering, loneliness, and marginalization. Our findings show the important and complex relationship between family ties, flight, and health. The bonds between familial members seems to play an important role in proving strength and support, which emerges as crucial for the adaptation process and well-being of the three women. Although not in unproblematic ways. Accessing sensitive topics within such groups can be demanding; however, ethnography, through face-to-face interrelationship, can provide the necessary knowledge and insights to this understudied group.