A bold new voice is rising in the call for racial equity in healthcare.
Heena Mahmood, a respected NHS leader and practice as a Senior Specialist Physiotherapist who’s deeply involved in advocacy and leadership, has released her debut book, ‘Minority Ethnic Voices in Healthcare Professions’ – a powerful and much-needed exploration of racial inequality within the UK’s healthcare system.
Launched at a packed event at Leeds Civic Hall, the book offers compelling case studies and first-hand interviews with healthcare workers from ethnic minority backgrounds, ranging from support staff to senior executives. Their stories, often marked by resilience in the face of systemic bias, expose the realities of discrimination while also offering hope, strategy, and a roadmap for real change.
“This book gives voice to those too often spoken about, but rarely heard,” said Heena during her launch speech. “It’s about time we centre the perspectives of minority ethnic professionals in the conversations that directly affect them.”
Heena’s insights come from personal and professional experience. As a trailblazer in the NHS, she founded the first BAME staff network in a large NHS trust and was a key figure in the award-winning West Yorkshire regional race equality initiative.
Her work spans both digital healthcare innovation and frontline physiotherapy, giving her a unique lens into the layered challenges ethnic minority staff face.
The book has already earned praise from prominent figures, including Baroness Shaista Gohir OBE of the Muslim Women’s Network, who called it “a must-read for anyone committed to improving workplace culture and creating a more inclusive healthcare system.”
Far from a critique alone, the book is a practical guide filled with forward-thinking solutions for healthcare managers, policymakers, and workers alike.
Heena addresses how institutional racism manifests and what steps can be taken to dismantle it – from leadership accountability to structural reform.
Now available for purchase in the UK and US, with releases scheduled in Australia and New Zealand later this year, ‘Minority Ethnic Voices in Healthcare Professions’ is poised to spark vital conversations across global healthcare systems.
