Covid-19: Disparities and Lessons learned

Abstract

The first virtual mid-year conference organised by the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO) was held on the 19 September 2020 hosted by the BAPIO North-West regional chapter. The conference digital platform used was Gurukul Education (https://gurukuleducation.online/). There were 736 registrations and 178 attended through the virtual conference hall and 803 attended the live streaming viewing facility. The conference was focused on aspects of Covid-19, from the current status in the UK and India, public health aspects of the pandemic, vulnerability of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) population, initiatives taken to reduce the impact on general practice or mental health services and routine non-Covid care. Strategies on the reduction of risk in the workplace, formal risk assessments, promotion of a healthy lifestyle and wider societal education initiatives were incorporated. The need for ongoing research in differential adverse outcomes in BAME population was evident, as well as in prevention measures such as vaccination.