{"id":4110,"date":"2023-01-26T10:59:37","date_gmt":"2023-01-26T10:59:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/integratedcarejournal.com\/?p=4110"},"modified":"2023-02-09T14:42:45","modified_gmt":"2023-02-09T14:42:45","slug":"radar-healthcare-uk-second-health-equalities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/integratedcarejournal.com\/radar-healthcare-uk-second-health-equalities\/","title":{"rendered":"Radar Healthcare report ranks UK second on overall healthcare equalities"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new Healthcare Inequalities Report<\/em><\/a>, released by Radar Healthcare, has ranked 35 of the most developed countries around the world, offering a comprehensive insight into which of these countries offers the best healthcare rights to its citizens through their laws and regulations.<\/p>\n

The report places Canada, the UK and Norway in the top three for global healthcare equality, with each generally offering fair and equitable access to healthcare for its citizens.<\/p>\n

Radar Healthcare<\/a>\u2019s report also makes reference to a recent Public Policy Projects report, A Women\u2019s Health Agenda: Redressing the Balance<\/em><\/a>, which produced a series of recommendations aimed at improving the design, delivery and outcomes of women\u2019s healthcare.<\/p>\n

While the UK places well overall, the report ranks it number 1 for factors relating specifically to women, with Canada coming in second place.<\/p>\n

Below is a snapshot of the report\u2019s findings on maternity and paternity leave.<\/p>\n

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Maternity and paternity leave<\/h3>\n

The UK lags behind Denmark and Norway on the \u2018paid maternity leave\u2019 metric, offering 39 weeks of paid leave and 13 weeks of unpaid leave, compared with 52 weeks of paid leave in Denmark, while Norway offers 49 weeks of paid leave and 59 weeks of unpaid leave.<\/p>\n

The report draws key distinction between paid and unpaid maternity leave; a high number of overall weeks of maternity leave may appear impressive but the degree to which this includes paid leave is highly consequential. For example, Italy offers 4 months of paid maternity leave and 17 weeks of unpaid leave, however, leaving a new mother without a salary for 17 weeks places them in a potentially vulnerable situation, perhaps leaving them more reliant on a partner or family for support.<\/p>\n

On paternity leave, the UK scores poorly, scoring offering just 14 days of paid leave to new fathers, while Sweden offers 240 days, the Netherlands 182 days and Denmark 168 days. Germany, meanwhile, has no laws mandating employers to offer new fathers paternity leave, either paid or unpaid.<\/p>\n

The lower provision of paid paternity leave is a key metric of gender-based healthcare inequality, since less leave for fathers places more of the burden for childcare on mothers, as well as limiting the valuable bonding time between a newborn and their father.<\/p>\n

Further to maternity and paternity leave, the report<\/a> assesses each country\u2019s standing in regard to the following categories:<\/p>\n