EMA CEOs review progress on the PCREF
East Midlands Alliance CEOs recently came together for a focused session on national and regional progress in implementing the Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework (PCREF).
PCREF is a race equity and accountability framework that helps organisations understand what steps they can take to achieve practical improvements to become actively anti-racist organisations. It supports providers to co produce and deliver real actions that reduce racial inequalities in services.
PCREF focuses on three core areas:
- Leadership and governance: Boards lead on setting and monitoring clear plans to reduce health inequalities.
- Data: A new dataset will track improvements in reducing inequalities, alongside more detailed ethnicity data in existing datasets.
- Feedback mechanisms: Organisations will develop visible, effective ways for patients and carers to give feedback, with clear processes for acting on it.
During the session in February, CEOs met with the EMA PCREF group, which is made up of representatives from all six providers and PCREF leads. They discussed progress, challenges, provided feedback and shared learnings.
NHS England PCREF Chair, Dr Jacqui Dyer MBE, and Programme Lead, Husnara Malik, led an impressive discussion on the progress nationally, highlighting key achievements including the programme's expansion to 18 exemplar sites. The framework is now also part of CQC inspections.
Regional provider updates
Each East Midlands provider shared how they are implementing and embedding PCREF locally. For example, Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust and Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust discussed the key targets for their Together Against Racism programmes to reduce racial inequalities and improve access, experience and outcomes for people from ethnic and cultural minority communities.
Meanwhile, Nottinghamshire Healthcare Foundation Trust has embedded mandatory cultural capability training for staff to provide culturally sensitive care and a PCREF dashboard has been introduced to ensure informed care delivery.
Angela Hillery, Group CEO of Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust and Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust said:
The PCREF remains a high priority for the East Midlands Alliance and is central to our strategic aim of improving patient experience and outcomes by reducing inequalities.
The presentations showcased the significant progress already made across the region and the ambitious next steps planned. Leaders left the session motivated to continue championing race equality in mental health care.
Dr Jacqui Dyer, MBE, NHSE National Mental Health Equalities Advisor and Chair of the NHSE Patient and Carer Race Equality Framework said:
What's particularly encouraging is seeing EMA partners take collective ownership of the PCREF into everyday practice, working alongside communities and people with lived experience, translating the framework into sustained action that tackles race inequalities and supports mental health services to better reflect and serve the communities they support.