JSNA Inclusion Health Groups

Inclusion health is a ‘catch-all’ term used to describe people who are socially excluded. These people usually experience many overlapping risk factors for poor health. Risk factors can include:

• poverty,
• adverse childhood experiences,
• violence,
• substance use,
• mental illness,
• and complex trauma.

They experience stigma and discrimination. They are not consistently accounted for in electronic records, such as healthcare databases.

These experiences often lead to barriers in access to healthcare. People belonging to inclusion health groups regularly suffer from multiple health issues. These can include mental and physical ill health and substance dependence issues. This leads to poorer health outcomes and lower average age of death, often much worse than the general population. This contributes considerably to increasing health inequalities.

Evidence shows these people underuse services for primary and preventative care. They often rely on emergency services like Accident and Emergency (A&E) when their health needs become more serious. This results in missed opportunities for preventive interventions, serious illness, and inefficiencies. Further increasing existing health inequalities.

There will be differences in needs within socially excluded groups. For example differences between men and women. The differences need understanding, and responses should be pro-active and holistic in approach.

This JSNA information considers inclusion health groups across the Isle of Wight. Where possible it aims to quantify these communities in our population. It includes where they live and their demographics. It describes the potential health outcomes and challenges they may face.

The inclusion health groups identified in this report are:

• coastal communities (including Left Behind Neighbourhoods),
• people with drug and alcohol dependency,
  
• Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community,
• people experiencing homelessness,
• people in contact with the justice system,
• sex workers,
• veterans,
• victims of modern slavery,
• vulnerable migrants (including Afghan nationals).

Notes and references:

• The Lancet - Inclusion health: addressing the causes of the causes
• Public Health England - Inclusion Health: applying All Our Health 
• Journal of Public Health - Adverse childhood experiences: retrospective study to determine their impact on adult health behaviours and health outcomes in a UK population
• Pathway, a homeless and inclusion health charity, have helpful advice about homeless and inclusion health
  standards

• Download the Inclusion Health Groups - Full Report (PDF, 2.69MB)
• Download the Inclusion Health Groups - Summary Infographic (PDF, 944KB)