Mortality differences and inequalities within and between 'protected characteristics' groups, in a Scottish Cohort...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Epidemiology
• Social Determinants of Health

Background:

• Limited understanding of socio-economic status interactions with protected characteristics in Scotland.
• Need to identify population groups for targeted health inequality reduction.
• Study focuses on social class and deprivation as moderators of mortality differences.

Purpose of the Study:

• Examine mortality differences moderated by social class and deprivation.
• Identify specific population groups for health improvement priority.
• Inform public health strategies beyond solely focusing on the most deprived.

Main Methods:

• Utilized the Scottish Longitudinal Study (1991, 2001, 2011 censuses).
• Estimated mortality hazard ratios using Cox proportional hazards models.
• Calculated European age-standardised mortality rates and Relative Index of Inequality (RII).

Main Results:

• Asian population showed polarized distribution across deprivation deciles.
• Disabled individuals and those raised Roman Catholic were more likely to be deprived.
• Males and disabled individuals had higher mortality; Asians and females generally had lower mortality.
• Mortality inequalities were greater in non-disabled, majority population, and young adult females.

Conclusions:

• Mortality patterns identified across various protected characteristics and socio-economic factors.
• Relative inequalities in mortality differed across groups, notably lower in disabled and majority populations.
• Emphasizes the importance of intersectionality in health inequality research.