Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Particularly at Risk of Covid – 19

There is growing concern about the numbers of black and minority ethnic patients affected by the disease. At first glance the data suggests BAME people are the preferred choice of victim for the Covid-19 virus.

The Intensive Care National Audit and Research Centre (ICNARC) document states that nearly a third of people who were critically ill with coronavirus were from BAME backgrounds. This is out of proportion with the UK’s general population, with 13% of people being from BAME communities, according to the last census.

The report was based on 2,249 people who have contracted Covid – 19. Out of these, 14% described themselves as Asian, another 14% described themselves as black and 7% described themselves as other.

Professors Kamlesh Khunti and Wasim Hanif from the South Asian Health Foundation (SAHF), first highlighted that these groups could face a greater chance of becoming severely unwell with coronavirus compared to white people.

This was after hearing about the disproportionate numbers of younger South Asian people who were critically ill with the virus from colleagues working in intensive care units.

Check out our video below which highlights the impact of coronavirus on BAME population:

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