The coronavirus pandemic has undoubtedly challenged every facet of society. However, the resulting impact has disproportionately affected individuals from disadvantaged and underprivileged backgrounds. The literature demonstrates that those from deprived areas are more likely to acquire and suffer from COVID-19, highlighting the existence of stark health inequalities in England and other parts of the UK (Marmot et al, 2020).
Disparities in society have always existed; however, the pandemic has exposed and intensified pre-existing divides. In fact, the virus has seemingly exacerbated the societal inequities that define contemporary British society. These inequalities represent systemic, avoidable and unjust differences in health between different groups of people. Further, serious illness and mortality are typically increased due to factors that disproportionately affect those with poor socioeconomic status (Whitehead et al, 2021). This includes people living with diabetes, obesity, hypertension and cardiovascular diseases, which are unequally distributed and more abundant in the most deprived areas (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2021).
Those who live in poorer communities in the UK have a significantly reduced life expectancy and access to education compared with their affluent counterparts (Iacobucci, 2019). While many middle-class professionals are protected by working from their COVID-safe homes, others have nowhere to hide from coronavirus, including at their place of employment, which may further put their health at risk. The devastating effects of the virus have bled into most aspects of daily living, industry and education, and damage will be long-lasting. For many, performing academic or employment tasks remotely is not an option. Those who work in health care, retail and transport, for example, have faced years of being undervalued and are now at a greater risk of contracting a lethal virus, often without choice. As with the previous economic crash, it is these same workers, the under-paid and unrecognised, who bear the overwhelming impact of coronavirus and its devastation. It seems your health, opportunities and income are wholly reliant on the particular rung of the British social ladder on which you are positioned.
The literature similarly evidences the negative impact of economic and social stratification to the educational opportunities of children (Crosnoe and Cooper, 2010). Children of economically disadvantaged parents lack sufficient access to resources and opportunities, which can restrict and limit social mobility. Even more troubling in this context is the continuation of achievement disparities among disadvantaged students in undergraduate education. Although universities have implemented and encouraged special measures to prevent students being disadvantaged because of the pandemic, these largely benefit already privileged students. Sadly, it is not a shock to learn that the UK education system still principally cater to the advantaged among us, though it is shocking to know that such disparities are not being resolved.
Despite attempts to mitigate and minimise disruptions caused by the pandemic, the alterations made to undergraduate study have, arguably, exacerbated pre-existing inequalities.
‘It seems your health, opportunities and income are wholly reliant on the particular rung of the British social ladder on which you are positioned’
In response to the first wave of the pandemic, nursing and other allied healthcare students were rightly and justifiably withdrawn from clinical placements. To offset the substantial loss of clinical experience, many universities and healthcare trusts have encouraged students to take compensatory hours during the Easter and summer holidays. Failure to attend these supplementary periods of placement could result in delayed progression or graduation. Although this represents a beneficial opportunity for some, it is likely to disproportionately negatively affect those in less privileged situations. For many, university holidays are a period during which they seek employment to continue funding their studies. The reliance on paid work is a reality for many university students, particularly those in disadvantaged positions. These alterations to undergraduate study seem to contribute to, rather than alleviate, the barriers these students face.
Extending placement opportunities into the student holidays has not only caused disproportionate learning losses for these students, but has also widened and contributed to existing gaps, potentially leading to a rise in drop-out and referral rates. In a profession where burnout rates are already high (Dall'Ora et al, 2020), it is not unreasonable to suggest that the retention of student nurses and other healthcare students may become problematic. Systemic issues in higher education act as obstacles that typically affect specific student populations. Being from a minority ethnic group, being a first-generation university student or a socially disadvantaged student are all factors that influence why student nurses leave or fall behind in their nursing programmes (Mitchell et al, 2021). Undergraduate clinical education relies on a delicate balance of academic and practical teaching. However, it can be argued that holiday placements will only benefit privileged healthcare students. For those who rely on paid work during these periods it seems the opportunity of academic and clinical progression is in reverse.
During the pandemic we have learnt a terrible lesson: inequality causes death, hinders development and restricts economic prosperity. The same society that advocates for education for all, still principally caters to the privileged few. Even in normal times, there exists stark and persistent achievement disparities across socioeconomic backgrounds and between people of different ethnicities.
The injustices present in the UK education and social systems have only been compounded and intensified during the pandemic. These inequalities are not mere facts of life, or something that can be shrugged from existence—they demand resolution and rectification. How are we expected to succeed when half of us are held back? Put simply, issues relating to social inequalities lack permanent representation.
The damaging social crisis existed long before the pandemic; however, the virus has exposed the unfavourable reality of our social order. It is well within higher educational institutions' power to develop inclusive practices that nurture those with fewer opportunities, not to shun them. Mitigating the impact of coronavirus for those from deprived communities should represent a fundamental concern for the government, universities and other stakeholders. It sadly is not a shock to learn of the unequal impact the virus has caused, although it is shocking knowing it is not eliciting a resolution.
‘The coronavirus has exposed the unfavourable reality of our social order’