Health and care partners in Brighton and Hove are to be part of a new Trans-Atlantic research project to find important lessons from the pandemic to help reduce inequality.
The Institute of Development Studies research project aims to identify the innovations and collaborations that have emerged in response to Covid-19 and analyse their effects on pre-existing and pandemic inequities.
NHS Sussex (which launches on 1 July) and Brighton & Hove City Council are joining global partners to understand how their experiences during the Covid-19 pandemic can help to better support our people and communities.
The Covid-19 pandemic has highlighted social, health and nutritional inequities, which dedicated health and care staff work hard to alleviate, to help improve peoples’ lives. It has also driven innovations and collaborations, some of which could have the potential to challenge and transform the longstanding inequities.
This new research will document, analyse and draw wider lessons from the three socially diverse and economically dynamic cities of Brighton & Hove, São Paulo in Brazil and Toronto in Canada.
As part of the research findings, strategies for future actions will be identified through the research into insights from social science and the experiences of activists, social entrepreneurs, front-line workers and local public officials.
Adam Doyle, Chief Executive Officer for NHS Sussex said:
“We are committed to challenging and reducing inequality in our communities, so we are delighted to be part of this global research to identify promising innovations from our response to the COVID-19 crisis.
“Brighton & Hove had some of the first cases of Covid-19 in the UK, and since that day health and care teams worked extremely hard to respond to the pandemic and ensure city residents had the best possible care and support.
“This important research into grassroots innovations and collaborations among community volunteers and frontline service providers working with communities since the pandemic began will be a catalyst for change.
“We value this opportunity to exchange experiences and lessons learned at a global scale with our health and care counterparts in Toronto and Sao Paulo. Our participation in the Trans-Atlantic collaboration in this project will be of benefit to our communities in Sussex and beyond.”
Gerry Bloom, Research Fellow at the Institute of Development Studies, said
“This project is a fantastic opportunity to learn from the pandemic across three vibrant, global cities and learn how to best support marginalised communities in the future.
“Our partners in São Paulo and Toronto are very keen to exchange experiences with Brighton, a city that is recognised for its innovative responses to health and social challenges.”
NHS Sussex forms on 1 July as part of the Sussex Health and Care Integrated Care System – bringing together partners to deliver better health and care for all people across Sussex.
Their ambition is for every person living in Sussex to have access to the best health and care from the moment they are born and throughout their lives. The participation and collaboration of city partners in this project will be of benefit to work underway across Brighton & Hove to further improve outcomes for local people, as well as being used more widely across the whole of Sussex.
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