Scottish Government urged to tackle heart health inequalities
Women in Scotland’s poorest communities are nearly twice as likely to suffer heart failure compared with those in wealthy areas
The Scottish Government has been urged to tackle inequalities in cardiovascular health as research finds GPs in the poorest areas deal with 90% more cases of heart failure in women than those in rich areas.
Analysis by the IPPR think tank found a 50% gap between GPs in the richest and poorest areas in cases of heart failure.
Researchers looked at cases faced by GPs across the country, broken down by 10% increments of poverty.
Cases of coronary heart disease were 80% higher for women in poorer areas and 40% higher for men.
Jamie O'Halloran, a senior research fellow at the think tank, urged the Government to take action, including by boosting funding for GPs in the poorest areas of the country.
"The evidence is unambiguous," he said.
"The burden of cardiovascular health is felt heaviest by the most deprived communities - with GPs in these areas having far greater caseloads than elsewhere in the country.
"The Scottish Government must confront these inequalities head-on.
"Tackling inequalities must be given priority across all health-related policymaking.
"This means providing greater resources and support for GPs in deprived areas so they can effectively deliver the care their patients urgently need."
Researchers also looked at the prevalence of diabetes and hypertension - two conditions which increase the risk of heart disease.
According to the findings 50% more men and 71% more women registered with GPs in the most deprived 10% of areas were found to have diabetes than their more affluent counterparts, while the gap for hypertension was 14% and 30% respectively.
A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "We are determined to reduce avoidable cardiovascular deaths by a fifth over 20 years.
"That is why by March 2026 we will provide extra GP appointments to support 100,000 patients who may be at risk due to obesity, smoking, high blood sugar, blood pressure or cholesterol as part of our cardiovascular disease risk factors programme which has particular focus on supporting people living in areas of deprivation."
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