Your local Insight News brings you a snapshot of health and wellbeing Insights reflecting feedback abouts people’s experiences of living in East Kent.

We hope these Insights can inform your work to improve services for residents of East Kent.

 What we have heard about:

Online healthcare / Primary Care / Mental health / Building a neighbourhood health approach / Wider determinants of health / Community news

The report identifies a ‘hidden waiting list’ exists before the official wait even starts with people in Kent and Medway being nearly three times more likely than the national average, to experience a GP related delay to a referral for an ADHD assessment. Delays can occur at the GP referral stage (administration issues, referrals sent incorrectly, process changes, etc.), extending the overall time to assessment. 

Our research identified lower than expected levels of feedback from people about ‘shared care’ arrangements between ADHD specialists and their GP. We would like to try and understand why this is. Is it because it’s not happening?

If you are a GP who has experienced working in partnership with an ADHD specialist we would love to hear your experience to inform a wider picture of how shared care could improve people’s experience of accessing ADHD medication.

In East Kent our data shows that those identifying as male are 54% more likely to report negative experience of the mental health system, than other genders.

National research suggests that while men are generally less likely to seek help for mental health issues compared to women, those who do engage with services often report positive experiences and beneficial outcomes, particularly when the support is tailored to their needs.

These differences are not limited to prevalence of mental illness but appear to extend to differences in how men value aspects of service design such as practical, action-oriented, and solution focused therapy and support.

We would like to build a clearer picture of how gendered experiences are shaped by service design, clinical bias, and structural inequalities. If you would like to help fund a short research project please contact us.

42% of people said ‘Service Accessibility’ was the factor that would have greatest influence in their perception of neighbourhood health. This was seen as better neighbourhood health equals shorter travel times, availability of local clinics, and integrated services. 

Public perceptions of service accessibility at a local level within the NHS show a mixed picture. We continue to hear from the public about the challenges in accessing GPs, waiting times for treatment pathways and growing concern about the levels of corridor care and A&E waiting times. The top priority for the public remains improving GP access. 

Safety after dark emerged as a key issue, with several residents saying they felt unsafe in the evenings due to anti‑social behaviour and groups of young people.

Ashford residents over 55 told us that transport remains their biggest concern, with many reporting limited or unreliable bus services that affect their daily lives. People also raised worries about traffic and urbanisation, which some felt had led to congestion, roadworks and flooding in the area.

Despite these challenges, many highlighted the value of Ashford’s green spaces and community groups, which provide important opportunities to stay active and connected. Views on the town centre were largely negative, with residents describing a high number of empty units and limited variety of shops.

In East Kent our data indicates that people from Black, Black British, African or Caribbean ethnicities are 70% more likely to report a negative and mixed experiences of their general healthcare than other ethnicities.

In East Kent,  higher proportions in Canterbury driven partly by universities, in Thanet, local populations reflect coastal migration patterns and relatively affordable housing, while Ashford has one of the fastest‑growing Black populations in Kent.

This pattern of feedback about experience of healthcare in east Kent raises important equity issues. The Kent and Medway JSNA data confirms overlapping social and health disadvantages and the local Health Alliance are initiating community-led, culturally responsive health initiatives but there are not yet systemic

Given East Kent’s diversifying population, ethnic inequality in healthcare experience risks widening local health outcomes gaps. We would like to research these reported differences in experience, to inform the work happening at a local level, enabling targeted action to address ethnicity based differences in trust, access, and experience.

These issues were explored at the recent Kent and Medway Black Health Inequalities summit. Learning from peoples experience through the lens of intersectionality is vital to improving health equity locally. To be part of this research please contact us.

Questions that we ask can be about anything that might affect someone's health, social care or community.

These Insights add depth to our reflections and bring richness to our reports. When you answer the monthly question you are helping to paint a wider picture of how people are feeling across Kent and Medway.

Want to add your voice to the hundreds of others already having the conversation?

For more information about any of the contents of this Insight Update, please email us at comms@ek360.co.uk.