PO109 Is there an ethnicity bias of access to multiple services in the nhs? – the barts health experience

• Published in: Journal of neurology, neurosurgery and psychiatry Vol. 88; no. Suppl 1; p. A40
• Main Authors: Allen-Philbey, Kimberley, Albor, Christo, Raciborska, Dominika, Turner, Ben, Giovannoni, Gavin, Schmierer, Klaus
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London BMJ Publishing Group LTD 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Bias; Cultural differences; Ethnicity
• ISSN: 0022-3050; 1468-330X
• DOI: 10.1136/jnnp-2017-ABN.139

BackgroundPrinciple 1 of the NHS constitution dictates that services should be accessible irrespective of ethnic background. We explored ethnic equity of the clinical service experience in patients with multiple sclerosis (pwMS) in east London.MethodsData was queried using the BartsMS Database, holding data on >1400 pwMS. Patients born since 1975, and diagnosed between 2011 and 2014 were included. Variations by ethnicity were tested in time from (i) first symptom to diagnosis (S2D) and (ii) diagnosis to disease-modifying treatment (DMT) (D2T).Results49 pwMS had complete data, 21 of whom were White, 15 South Asian, 9 Black and 4 Other/mixed. Black pwMS had the shortest S2D (1.6 years), compared to White pwMS (2.0) and South Asians (2.3). Time from diagnosis to treatment was 2 years or less in 90% of White pwMS, 73% in South Asian and 67% in Black pwMS. This was despite Black pwMS having the highest number of relapses within 2 years of diagnosis.ConclusionEthnic differences in MS service experience may exist. Given known ethnic differences in the natural history of MS, it is prudent to repeat this study with larger sample sizes and identify any causes of service inequity.