The publication of the inaugural Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) report for the NHS in Wales is an important step in the Welsh journey towards racial equity, an ambition set out in the Anti-racist Wales Action Plan (ArWAP) of 2022. The journey towards being an anti-racist nation by 2030 is a long and tough one, and the WRES is a tool to help on the way.
The WRES is a dataset. It is a display of the experience of ethnic minority people working in the largest employer in Wales, our NHS. As a dataset, it is not of itself a vehicle for change. It is, rather, the roadmap of where that change journey needs to be directed towards and where it needs to end. The data identifies that, regrettably, the discrimination experienced by Black, Asian and ethnic minority staff is across a range of domains – reduced opportunities for recruitment and promotion, increased likelihood of being placed on capability and disciplinary processes, and being subject to greater rates of bullying and harassment both from the public and co-workers. This national report also identifies that these experiences are borne by staff throughout the country, but variably in different sectors of healthcare. For example, ethnic minority staff in our Health Boards are less likely to be promoted than their peers in special health authorities; another example is the significant proportional deficit in directors from an ethnic minority background in our NHS Trusts compared to the ambulance service.
What this points to is the need for each of our NHS organisations in Wales to have an understanding of the particular challenges they face, and so the national report has been complemented by individual analysis shared with each of the organisations displaying their particular data pinch-points. The journey proceeds by the leadership in each organisation tackling those specific targets, employing evidence-based actions and monitoring performance repeatedly along the pathway to improvement. Taking such focussed and effective steps allows these processes to become embedded milestones of progress, rather than just transient changes. Achieving these goals requires staff participation to not only share their experiences in the national staff survey, but also by relating individual examples of good and bad practice they have witnessed.
While the key to driving the desired change is leadership intent to see meaningful improvement, there are many other stakeholders whose input is key: the unions, the Welsh Government, the national patient safety organisations, foundations and Royal Colleges. It cannot be left to the staff alone to find the solutions – there needs to be common purpose with sharing of best practice, regulation informed by principles of racial justice and provision of support to those staff who are most discriminated against. The ultimate destination of anti-racist Wales is to improve the health outcomes of everyone in Wales, by ensuring all staff are able to provide their best level of care. We can’t afford to fail in this goal.
To conclude with another well-known travel aphorism, ‘If you want to go fast, travel alone; if you want to go far, travel together’.
Professor Anton Emmanuel, Head of Strategy and Implementation for the Health and Social Care Workforce Race Equality Standard (WRES) for Wales