Overall, this report by the Health Foundation, suggests there have been modest gains in some living-standards, including some hopeful signs of reductions in child poverty, but this is set against persistent, and in places deepening, structural inequalities that continue to drive poor health. Focusing on average outcomes paints a picture of men in Scotland doing relatively well but this obscures a subset of young adult men facing multiple socio-economic challenges who are at high risk of early, preventable deaths.
This is the second annual report from the Health Foundation funded Scottish Health Equity Research Unit (SHERU). This year we have split the report into two sections:
Part 1 provides a stock-take of key data that capture health inequality trends and the underpinning socio-economic conditions that shape population health in Scotland.
Part 2 offers a deep dive into deaths from drugs, alcohol and suicide and highlights young adult men experiencing socio-economic deprivation as a population group at high risk of these preventable deaths.