By Keziah Cracknell
The latest stats have suggested that those from Black And Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds and communities have been disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Yet, as I investigated this research, I was amazed at the lack of research done for these communities. The NHS only recently released for the first time, data showing the ethnic breakdown of people who have died from the coronavirus. There are no other official Government stats that show deaths based on ethnicity or background, only overall deaths.
This raises a lot of questions about how COVID-19 is affecting different communities across the country. It could be far worse in certain communities than others, but currently we have no concrete ways of knowing.
There has only been one study done, with a very small sample size, and in that study, it showed that 35% of patients were non-white. This is high compared to the percentage population as a whole.
Now, is this something we should be concerned for? Does this all of a sudden mean people from certain backgrounds have to isolate or remain in lockdown longer than others?
Huddersfield has a high percentage of diverse ethnic backgrounds, so does that mean people in Huddersfield should be treated differently? Of course not.
In the most recent Government Race Audit, results found that those from BAME households were more likely to be in what is known as ‘persistent poverty’ according to the Government.
Could there be a correlation between poverty and rates of infection? It stands to reason that people who can’t afford to just ‘stop working’ are at a higher risk than those who are able to simply stay at home and wait out the lockdown. And many of those low-paying jobs that are now considered essential are done by people from those same BAME households.
Could poverty be a more important factor for those at risk for COVID-19? These questions are difficult to answer without further research, unfortunately with the NHS and the government stretched as thin as they are with their current workload, it may be a while before we get those answers.