A breast screening awareness event held last month in East London has helped to highlight the importance of culturally sensitive community engagement for health equity.
Taking place on Friday 31 October, at the Newham African Caribbean Resource Centre in Newham, East London, the event was organised by Dr Maryam Abubakar, executive director of Camford Medicals, in collaboration with Healthwatch Newham, the NHS Breast Screening Hub, and national cancer charities.
Dr Abubakar hoped to promote breast health awareness and early screening, particularly within underrepresented and culturally diverse communities.
Cultural comfort and guidance
The event was supported on the day by a small team of medics and volunteers, who helped deliver the information stations and engage with attendees throughout the event.
Attendees told the team that the event was “extremely positive”, with many explaining that it had improved their understanding of screening and increased their confidence about attending appointments
Creating a relaxed, non-clinical environment with stations covering screening signposting, myth-busting, cultural comfort, and self-examination guidance helped to ensure attendees were made aware of the importance of breast screening in a sensitive way.
'Sensitive and inclusive'
Dr Abubakar said: “The event was a wonderful collaboration that brought together healthcare professionals and local residents to promote breast screening awareness and early detection in a culturally sensitive and inclusive way.”
The team is now looking to expand this model into high-footfall community settings, such as supermarkets, to reach individuals who may not usually attend formal health events.
Sue Johnson, professional officer for clinical imaging at the SoR, said: “This inspiring effort reflects the importance of empowering individuals from all backgrounds to take charge of their health. Noelle, one of our Radiography Professionals of the Year awardees and the chair of the SoR Breast Imaging Special Interest Group, also kindly offered her support, alongside dedicated radiography professionals from the local breast screening services."
(Image: Breast screening awareness event, via Dr Maryam Abubakar)