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Health equity in endocrinology

Nature Reviews Endocrinology volume 20, pages 130–135 (2024)Cite this article

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Health equity is when every person can achieve their full potential for health and wellbeing. In this Viewpoint, global experts discuss the root causes and contributing factors to health inequity in endocrinology. Potential action points and research directions to help reduce health disparities are also discussed.

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Acknowledgements

K.B. acknowledges support from a National Heart Foundation Fellowship (106716). S.S. acknowledges support from the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Applied Research Collaboration East Midlands and the NIHR Leicester Biomedical Research center. K.H. acknowledges financial support provided to the SAMRC/Wits Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science – PRICELESS SA from the South African Medical Research Council (grant number 23108). J.J.M. acknowledges having received support from the Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research (HQHSR1206660), Bloomberg Philanthropies (grant 46129, via University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Public Health), FONDECYT via CIENCIACTIVA/CONCYTEC, British Council, British Embassy and the Newton-Paulet Fund (223-2018, 224-2018), DFID/MRC/Wellcome Global Health Trials (MR/M007405/1), Fogarty International Center (R21TW009982, D71TW010877, R21TW011740), Grand Challenges Canada (0335-04), International Development Research Center Canada (IDRC 106887, 108167), Inter-American Institute for Global Change Research (IAI CRN3036), National Cancer Institute (1P20CA217231), National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (HHSN268200900033C, 5U01HL114180, 1UM1HL134590), National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR 150261, NIHR 150287), National Institute of Mental Health (1U19MH098780), Swiss National Science Foundation (40P740-160366), UKRI BBSRC (BB/T009004/1), UKRI EPSRC (EP/V043102/1), UKRI MRC (MR/P008984/1, MR/P024408/1, MR/P02386X/1), Wellcome (074833/Z/04/Z, 093541/Z/10/Z, 103994/Z/14/Z, 107435/Z/15/Z, 205177/Z/16/Z, 214185/Z/18/Z, 218743/Z/19/Z) and the World Diabetes Foundation (WDF15-1224).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Global Centre for Preventive Health and Nutrition, Institute for Health Transformation, Deakin University, Burwood, Victoria, Australia

    Kathryn Backholer

  2. T1D Exchange, Boston, MA, USA

    Osagie Ebekozien

  3. John D Bower School of Population Health, University of Mississippi, Jackson, MS, USA

    Osagie Ebekozien

  4. SA MRC/Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science – PRICELESS SA, School of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa

    Karen Hofman

  5. Sydney School of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

    J. Jaime Miranda

  6. CRONICAS Centre of Excellence in Chronic Diseases, Universidad Peruana Cayetano Heredia, Lima, Peru

    J. Jaime Miranda

  7. Faculty of Epidemiology and Population Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, London, UK

    J. Jaime Miranda

  8. Diabetes Research Centre, Centre for Ethnic Health Research, University of Leicester, Leicester General Hospital, Leicester, UK

    Samuel Seidu

Authors
  1. Kathryn Backholer
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  2. Osagie Ebekozien
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  3. Karen Hofman
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  4. J. Jaime Miranda
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  5. Samuel Seidu
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Contributions

Kathryn Backholer. K.B. is a Professor of Public Health Policy and Co-Director of the Global Centre for Preventive Health and Nutrition at Deakin University, Australia. K.B. leads a research team focused on building the evidence to support healthy and equitable populations through preventive health policy and practice.

Osagie Ebekozien. O.E. is the Chief Medical Officer at the T1D Exchange, Boston. In this role, O.E. leads the T1D Exchange Quality Improvement learning network of over 50 US endocrinology centres. O.E. also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Population Health at the University of Mississippi School of Population Health.

Karen Hofman. K.H. is Director of the SAMRC Centre for Health Economics and Decision Science at the University of Witwatersrand. K.H. leads policy research that shows the biggest return on investment for equity and health. In 2022, she received the Science-for-Society Gold Medal from the Academy of Science of South Africa.

J. Jaime Miranda. J.J.M. is the Head of School at the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health. J.J.M.’s work brings together epidemiological and health policy aspects of chronic non-communicable diseases in low-income and middle-income countries, with a focus on obesity, hypertension, diabetes mellitus and mental health.

Samuel Seidu. S.S. is a Professor of Primary Care Diabetes and Cardio-metabolic Medicine at the University of Leicester. S.S. is currently the vice-chair for Research for Primary Care Diabetes Europe (PCDE). S.S. is also an Associate Editor of the Primary Care Diabetes Journal.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Kathryn Backholer, Osagie Ebekozien, Karen Hofman, J. Jaime Miranda or Samuel Seidu.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

K.B. declares no competing interests. O.E. is the Principal Investigator for research projects funded by Dexcom, Eli Lilly, Vertex and Medtronic Diabetes through his organization T1D Exchange. O.E. is also a member of the Medtronic Diabetes Health Inequity and Sanofi Advisory Board and has received speaker fees from Vertex and Medtronic Diabetes. K.H. declares no competing interests. J.J.M. declares having participation on a Data Safety Monitoring Board or Advisory Board (unpaid) - DSMB, Nigeria Sodium Study (NaSS); a trial Steering Committee, INTEnsive care bundle with blood pressure Reduction in Acute Cerebral haemorrhage Trial (INTERACT 3); an International Advisory Board, Latin American Brain Health institute (BrainLat), Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez (Chile); a Consultative Board, Programa de Gastronomía, Facultad de Estudios Interdisciplinarios, Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú; and an Advisory Board, InterAmerican Heart Foundation (IAHF). J.J.M is an unpaid co-Chair, Independent Group of Scientists (IGS), 2023 Global Sustainable Development Report, United Nations. J.J.M. is a member of the Scientific Expert Committee, Global Data Collaborative for CV Population Health, World Health Federation, Microsoft and Novartis Foundation; a member of the Scientific and Technical Advisory Committee (STAC), Alliance for Health Policy and Systems Research, World Health Organization; a member of the WHO Technical Advisory Group on NCD-related Research and Innovation (TAG/RI), Noncommunicable Diseases Department, World Health Organization and a member of the Advisory Scientific Committee, Instituto de Investigación Nutricional (Peru). S.S. has received speaker honoraria from: AstraZeneca, Boehringer Ingelheim, Janssen, Lilly, MSD, Novo Nordisk, SB Communications, OmniaMed, Roche, Napp, NB Medical, Amgen, Abbott and Meranini. S.S. has received advisory board honoraria from: AstraZeneca, Lilly, Boehringer Ingelheim, Janssen, MSD, Novo Nordisk, Napp, Takeda, Sanofi and Meranini. S.S. has received educational grants from: Boehringer Ingelheim, Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Takeda. S.S. has received conference registration and subsistence from: Boehringer Ingelheim, Janssen, Lilly, Novo Nordisk, Takeda. S.S. has received research grants from Sanofi.

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Related links

Health Equity Advancement Lab Advisor: http://www.t1dexchange.org/quality-improvement/heal

International activity to reduce iodine deficiencies: https://ign.org/about/

Social statistics from Australia: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/health/health-conditions-and-risks/diabetes/latest-release

T1D Exchange Quality Improvement Collaborative: http://www.t1dexchange.org/quality-improvement/

The National Diabetes Prevention Programme: https://www.england.nhs.uk/diabetes/diabetes-prevention

US Center for Disease Control and Prevention definition: https://www.cdc.gov/healthequity/whatis/index.html

WHO definition: https://www.who.int/health-topics/health-equity

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Backholer, K., Ebekozien, O., Hofman, K. et al. Health equity in endocrinology. Nat Rev Endocrinol 20, 130–135 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41574-023-00912-6

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