The Movember Prostate Cancer Equity Metric Project, a three-year initiative funded by the Movember charity, seeks to tackle socio-economic and geographic inequities in prostate cancer care in Scotland. Led by co-chief investigators Kevin Gallagher and Peter Hall, the project aims to develop and implement effective equity metrics across Scotland.
These metrics will enable the identification and monitoring of disparities in prostate cancer care. This will allow strategies to reduce disparity to be developed. The focus will be on areas with the greatest need and incorporating these metrics into national cancer quality performance reporting to track improvements over time.
The project will take advantage of Scotland’s NHS data resources, particularly the national quality performance programme for prostate cancer, which evaluates healthcare performance across the country’s 14 health boards. Currently, the programme lacks considerations for risk adjustment or socio-economic or geographic disparities.
The development of equity metrics in prostate cancer was recently recommended as a priority for reducing inequity. This project aims to do just that thus providing actionable insights for healthcare providers. By utilising comprehensive NHS data and engaging with both healthcare providers and patients through structured interviews, the initiative seeks not only to improve outcomes but also to ensure ongoing reductions in prostate cancer care inequities across Scotland.
