Advancing the debate on responsible terminology on migrant and ethnic minority health within public health - from awareness to guidance and implementation

Sep 30, 2026

The session addresses terminology and concepts used in public health research concerning migrant and ethnic minority health. It highlights the harms of aggregate, vague, and potentially harmful categories that ignore people’s living circumstances. Using a follow-up workshop format, it co-creates practical recommendations covering anti-discriminatory data collection, anti-discriminatory communication in health care, responsible publishing practices, and the role of community organizations. It also links responsible terminology to countering rightwing rhetoric through discrimination-sensitive terminology and categories in politically tense times.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages1

Reading Time3 min

AccessFree to download

Rationales and Purpose

Methods/Process of Workshop

Projected Learning Outcomes

Workshop Participants and Affiliations

vi10 European Journal of Public Health, Vol. 35, Supplement 6, 2025 WKS 21: Advancing the debate on responsible terminology on migrant and ethnic minority health within public health: from awareness to guidance and implementation, Auditrio B1 (FCSH), September 4, 2025, 16:00-17:00 Rationales and Purpose: Terminology and concepts used in public health research, particularly in relation to migrant and ethnic minority health, were discussed in a workshop at the European Public Health Conference (EPHC) in 2023 . The aim was to raise awareness of the problems of using aggregate, vague, and potentially harmful terms and categories that do not consider peoples’ living circumstances. An important outcome of the workshop was the need for developing actionable and practical recommendations for implementing a culture of responsible terminology and concepts in public health research. Methods/Process of Workshop: This follow-up-workshop aims to co-create practical recommendations on how to tackle challenges including avoiding stereotyping terminology and oversimplifying categories. To do so, it will include four different perspectives: 1) public health researchers will present case studies promoting antidiscriminatory data collection (Katja Kajikhina), 2) health professionals will highlight the necessity of anti-discriminatory communication in health-care (Anisa M. Ibrahim), 3) journal editors will suggest ways for responsible publishing (Pooja Jha) and, 4) community organizations will discuss the necessity of their participation in public health research and practice (Emma Rawson-Te Patu) . Projected Learning Outcomes: Concrete ideas will be developed on how the public health community can act against increasing rightwing rhetoric by implementing discrimination-sensitivity in the terminology and categories used in times of intensifying anti-migrant resentment. The aim is not only to set a good example for other researchers, but also to accept the responsibility of public health in difficult political times. Abstract citation ID: ckaf180 .030 291 Advancing the debate on responsible terminology on migrant and ethnic minority health within public health: from awareness to guidance and implementation Katja Kajikhina1, Carmen Koschollek1, Raj S. Bhopal2, Navina Sarma1, Allan Krasnik3, Pooja Jha, Bernadette Kumar4 1Robert Koch Institute, Berlin, Germany 2Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland 3University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark 4Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway

FAQs

What problem does the session focus on regarding public health terminology?

It focuses on the problems caused by using aggregate, vague, and potentially harmful terms and categories that fail to reflect people’s living circumstances.

How does the workshop aim to generate recommendations?

It co-creates practical recommendations to address challenges such as avoiding stereotyping terminology and oversimplifying categories, using four perspectives from researchers, health professionals, journal editors, and community organizations.

What learning outcomes are projected from the workshop?

Participants will develop concrete ideas for how public health can respond to increasing rightwing rhetoric by implementing discrimination-sensitive terminology and categories, while taking responsibility in difficult political times.

Sep 30, 2026

Uploaded by Aria Callaghan