EDI Smart-Dash: Supporting health organisations to develop a more inclusive working environment.

Background NHS is one of the largest and diverse global workforces1,2–4. Staff from ethnic minority backgrounds experience high levels of bullying, harassment, and discrimination1,4.

Despite prior NHS initiatives such as the Equality Delivery System 2, Equality and Diversity Council, workforce race equality standards (WRES), and inclusive organisational culture building resources (e.g., NHS Civility and Respect toolkit (NHS-CRT)10), NHS Human Resource (HR) processes perpetuate stereotypes and biases4.

Current approaches are not delivering the desired inclusive work environment. Our proposed research aims at introducing an approach that addresses this key NHS priority5.

Aims and Objectives Our aim is to prepare for the Work and Health Research Collaboration (WHRC) application to co-develop the architecture of an Equality Diversity Inclusion (EDI) information system ( EDI smart-dash ) for assessing, monitoring, and supporting the development of a more inclusive working environment.

The objectives are to: Explore understanding and approaches of NHS organisations to challenges in assessing and monitoring EDI, and to improve their inclusive working environments.

Map and evaluate available datasets relevant to EDI and inclusive working environments, their availability and usability (including cost-effectiveness), ethical considerations, and potential linkages to support the EDI smart-dash. Undertake a scoping review, mapping the current evidence on EDI interventions designed to improve ethnic inclusivity.

Build a collaborative multidisciplinary partnership for the WHRC application that co-develops and evaluates the EDI smart-dash. Methods This developmental project comprises two work packages (WP) utilising a multi-method approach.

The first explores current evidence, data provisions and applications, using two components: WP1a gathers evidence using qualitative semi-structured interviews (n≈30) with purposive sampling to explore three healthcare organisations already responding to EDI concerns. Our interview participants include key NHS senior leaders and EDI HR leads.

Interviews are specifically undertaken in three geographically diverse NHS hospitals that are located in divergent socioeconomic and ethnically diverse contexts (St. George s Hospital London, Norwich and Norfolk Hospital, Leicester University Hospital). We also undertake interviews with NHS (England) EDI policy and strategy leads (see letters of support).

In WP1b we will review the key datasets that are potentially relevant to improve EDI working contexts and for undertaking a future cost-effectiveness analysis.

Our data mapping exercise aims to identify the critical resources used and understand their content, for instance which variables are collected, their formats and frequency of collection; their reliability and coverage; opportunities and challenges of data linkages.

In WP2, we will undertake a scoping review that maps the quality and level of evidence examining the EDI policies, initiatives, and interventions literatures, specifically focusing on their effectiveness in health contexts.

The genesis of this project emerged through active PPIE led by BAPIO and BIHR, and this intention to engage is woven through every work package of our project s design and in the composition and agenda of its steering group.

This includes conducting a series of semi-structured interviews with ethnic minority staff to explore the EDI experiences and views on NHS EDI data collection, policy, and initiatives in their workplaces.