Health equity We are working with Humanity & Inclusion to find out more about health equity for people with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities. We are running a consultation. You can tell us about health in your country by completing our survey: People with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities, their families and support persons. Please complete this survey: SURVEY FOR INDIVIDUALS Organisations that represent or work with people with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities. Please complete this survey: SURVEY FOR ORGANISATIONS Run a focus group. A good way to gather information about health equity is to run a focus group. A focus group is a group interview where participants can share their experiences. We can help you run an inclusive focus group about health equity for people with Down syndrome and intellectual disabilities. Find information and access resources here: RUN A FOCUS GROUP What is health equity? Health equity means that everyone has a fair opportunity to be as healthy as possible, without being disadvantaged in achieving it. This means there are no unfair, avoidable, or changeable differences in the health outcomes of groups of people. We have made a short video to explain what health equity is and why we are doing this project. What international commitments are there to health equity? United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CRPD) Article 25 of the UN CRPD says that: “persons with disabilities have the right to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health without discrimination on the basis of disability”. This means that people with disabilities have the right to health equity. United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG's) Health equity is also included in the SDG's. Goal 3 is ‘Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages’. World Health Organization report on health equity In 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a Global report on health equity for persons with disabilities. An EasyRead version of the report can be found here. This report found that people with disabilities around the world have worse health outcomes than other people. This means they do not have health equity. These outcomes include: Mortality – people with disabilities are more likely to die young than other people. Morbidity - people with disabilities have higher rates of physical and medical health conditions than other people. Functioning – people with disabilities face more barriers in their environments that limit their day-to-day activities and participation in society, than other people. These poor outcomes are especially bad for people with intellectual disabilities. The report provides lots of recommendations on how governments can improve health equity for people with disabilities. Causes of bad health outcomes. People with Down syndrome are genetically more likely than others to have some health issues. For example, heart problems, thyroid issues, sleep apnoea and dementia. However, most of the health issues that people with Down syndrome face can be treated or managed. There are many external causes of the poor health outcomes that people with Down syndrome have. These causes are the same for other people with disabilities, although people with intellectual disabilities are among the worst affected. The World Health Organization report highlights some of these causes: Structural factors – for example, stigma and discrimination, or inadequate policies and processes. Social factors – for example, living in poverty or transport not being accessible. Risk factors - for example, not being physically active or having a poor diet. Issues with health systems – for example, badly trained health professionals or poor-quality health services. What can be done to improve health outcomes? Improving health outcomes is the responsibility of the government of each country. This is in line with the international commitments described above. The World Health Organization report outlines 40 actions that can be taken to improve health outcomes for people with disabilities. What our Ambassadors have to say about health equity. Our Ambassadors have recorded video messages to explain what health equity means to them. You can watch these videos on YouTube here: Ambassadors health equity messages Aims of the campaign. This will be a joint campaign by the Down Syndrome International network. The aims of the campaign are: To raise awareness around the world on the right to health equity. To gather evidence about the health equity of people with Down syndrome around the world. To advocate for changes in policy and legislation to promote health equity. 13th World Down Syndrome Day Conference The project was launched at the 13th World Down Syndrome Day Conference at the United Nations in New York. Self-advocates from around the world spoke up about their experience of health equity. Supporters, government and UN officials and NGO representatives also shared knowledge, experience, and good practice. Watch this recording of the launch event: Español: Las interpretaciones en español y portugués estarán disponibles a través de UN Web TV. Haga clic en el engranaje 'Configuración' en la esquina inferior derecha del video para seleccionar su idioma. Português: As interpretações em espanhol e português estarão disponíveis através da UN Web TV. Clique na engrenagem 'Configurações' no canto inferior direito do vídeo para selecionar seu idioma. Thank you! The DSi staff team would like to thank all of our Network members for their support in running and promoting this campaign. Special thanks to the National Down Syndrome Society (USA) and the Down's Syndrome Association (England, Wales and Northern Ireland) for their support. Thanks also to Humanity and Inclusion and the World Health Organisation. If you like what you have seen, why not sign up to join our network? Learn - find out what needs to change in the world so that all people with Down syndrome are fully included in society. Inform - tell us what life is like for people with Down syndrome where you live. Advocate - speak up for people with Down syndrome and disabilities. SIGN-UP Manage Cookie Preferences