1st Edition

Ethnicity, Equality of Opportunity and the British National Health Service

By Paul Iganski, David Mason Copyright 2002
    192 Pages
    by Routledge

    192 Pages
    by Routledge

    This title was first published in 2002: Numerous reports have identified the serious problems of under-representation of, and discrimination against, minority ethnic groups in the British NHS. It is widely argued that this both raises issues of social justice and undermines the quality of service to minority ethnic patients. Nowhere are these problems more acute than among the largest occupational group in the NHS - nurses. This book reports the results of research carried out for the English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting to evaluate NHS equal opportunities policy. Drawing on additional original research involving interviews with key policy actors, this fascinating book examines the prospects for a national strategy linking the business and justice cases for the delivery of greater equity in employment and service delivery.

    Contents: Introduction; Racism and the British National Health Service; Equal opportunity policy and the NHS; Is the black nurse an endangered species?; Selecting applicants for training in nursing and midwifery; Positive action in recruitment to nursing and midwifery training; Social change and the health care agenda; Policy, politics and health care; Bibliography; Index.

    Biography

    Paul Iganski, David Mason

    ’...the authors...demonstrate clearly how a large and complex organisation has completely failed to monitor the recruitment process.’ Health Matters ’This book is a welcome contribution tot he discussion and analysis of equality policies within the NHS in the UK...The major strength of the book is that it makes full use of quantitative and qualitative data from a research project commissioned by the English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting...It undoubtedly adds to the existing literature in this area...’ Work, Employment and Society ’This book provides the most up-to-date analysis of the provision of equal employment opportunities and initiatives in the NHS and how this is reflected in the employment, positioning and career development of minority ethnic nurses. It is the first study to examine the extent to which nurse education and training institutions have implemented equal opportunity measures for the recruitment and selection of applicants to pre- and post-registration training for nursing, midwifery and health visiting...The book provides an interesting and thought-provoking read. It deals with complex data in an accessible form...This book is of relevance to those more widely interested in issues of ’race’ equality beyond the NHS.’ BSA Network - Newsletter of the British Sociological Association