Southwark Council commissioned Comuzi to do an independent review of their processes to analyse how they design and commission healthcare services. The overarching aim of this research is to understand how Southwark established practices contribute and help in worsening inequalities faced by Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities.



To develop a toolkit and Workshop training package which can be used by healthcare funders to help reduce systemic biases within Southwark’s commissioning. After a thorough literature review of Southwark's healthcare reports we had to identify next steps for for them to go through.


We were also asked to develop a guide for training sessions so that healthcare commissioners can use our outputs to inform commissioners elsewhere in the health and social care system.Finally our guide had to include a long term plan on how healthcare commissioners could continue to collect data from different stakeholders who were active participants in their services in order to continuously engage in the work of eradicating racism in providing their services.To complete this long term projection we used methodologies of systems design that could then be translated in Southwark’s policies.

Actions
We researched the topic to build our background knowledge of systemic bias in healthcare, run focus groups with Commissioners, Residents and Providers of healthcare services to understand the issue at hand and started conceptualising a workshop/toolkit design alongside communication strategies for commissioners to continue working with underrepresented communities in the long run. We tested our workshop with all 3 different groups of stakeholders in focus groups and continued developing outputs that aligned with the policies that Southwark Diversity, Equity and Inclusion staff had already been putting in place under their EINA policy framework. In focus groups with providers and residents we made sure to turn their feedback into the requirements of making this workshop and toolkit to advocate for the needs of underrepresented communities.



Result
Created a workshop, toolkit, facilitator’s notes document and report for Southwark council’s commissioners to unearth their interpersonal perpetuation of oppressive biases but also to start identifying how their biases build power dynamics on an institutional level. After testing it a couple of times, commissioners have come back to us with feedback that this workshop and toolkit really helped them have the first difficult conversation about the complex topic of systemic racism and see ways in which they can build and reinforce anti-bias structures for the future.