Annual Equality Information Report January 2012
Tackling inequality of outcomes, disadvantage and discrimination is a key priority for NHS Manchester. This includes focusing on the specific needs of our communities of interest by improving access to local health services and reducing variation in service experience. NHS Manchester is committed to tackling inequalities within communities, and strives to reduce discrimination. We are determined to ensure that the services we commission promote good equality, diversity and human rights (EDHR) outcomes for patients, carers and staff from each of our local protected characteristic groups. A list of the protected characteristics are available here.
NHS Manchester will continue to promote equality of opportunity for both patients and staff. We will do this by:
- Continuing our engagement activities with patients and staff from local protected characteristic groups, proactively providing opportunities for patients and carers voices to be heard throughout our decision making processes.
- Making reasonable adjustments to accommodate the individual needs of protected characteristic groups who do not always take up local health services.
- Eliminating unlawful (prohibited) discrimination as defined within the Equality Act 2010.
- Ensuring that all staff have the appropriate training to recognise and appropriately address stereotyping, direct and indirect discriminatory behaviour.
- Ensure that all staff, through training and awareness raising, acknowledge and value difference, are empowered to challenge behaviours and assumptions towards EDHR and are aware that there are clear links to providing a quality service from a cohesive, effective workforce.
- Ensuring the service providers can provide assurances, and evidence their ability to respond to the needs of protected characteristic groups, and that provider organisations can also demonstrate their compliance with EDHR legal responsibilities.
- Adopting the Equality Delivery System (EDS), which is the NHS national EDHR performance system. The performance system provides the opportunity to work with local communities to “self assess/grade” our EDHR performance on an annual basis. These assessments will look at reviewing ‘health equality outcomes’ evidence from commissioners, Public Health, Human Resources and local provider partners. The self assessment will take ‘due regard’ of each of the protected groups, showing how we ensure fair access to information, services, premises (and employment opportunities), leading to improved healthcare opportunities for all local protected characteristic groups.
- Requiring potential and existing provider organisations (through procurement) to provide evidence of how they respond to the needs of protected characteristic groups.
- Ensuring future leaders (of emerging CCGs and CSS) are briefed and made aware of their legal duties and responsibilities with respect to EDHR.
- Ensuring the positive approaches to EDHR, and processes already implemented by NHS Manchester, are transferred to the new and emerging organisations as we move forward.
The new NHS Competency Framework for Equality and Diversity Leadership will also be adopted by NHS Manchester as part of the new Equality Delivery System or EDS.
NHS Manchester aims to make these duties transparent by publication of new Equality Objectives by 6 April 2012; this will be supported by the legacy documents and information that can be found on the Equality and Diversity pages of the PCT website.
Manchester’s Population – Joint Strategic Needs Assessment
The Joint Strategic Needs Assessments provide a city wide and locality overview of the health needs of Manchester population. We have explored the life course issues in more detail and how these issues impact on health and well being.
NHS Manchester has a strong working relationship with public sector partners and voluntary sector organisations in the city. NHS Manchester has contributed to the reports listed below that provide a comprehensive overview of the needs of Manchester residents.
Community of interest reports
What we have done in Manchester to date ……..
NHS Manchester is proud of the progress made in ensuring services that we provided (all provider services transferred in April 2011) and commission are accessible to all communities in Manchester.
Our NHS Manchester’s Single Equality Scheme 2008/2011 and action plan provides a comprehensive breakdown of the work undertaken across all the PCT functions to ensure improved EDHR outcomes for patients and staff.
Our Equality, Diversity and Human Rights (EDHR) Summary Report dated March 2011 is available here.
Our Duty to Report document 2010/11 gives details and outcomes from the range of patient and public engagement activities, showing where patient’s views and comments have been an integral part to of the PCT decision making processes, with respect to planning, commissioning and service redesign.
We have developed our Talking Health website where further details of our engagement activities and reports can be found.
The Strategic Health Authority, NHS North West, introduced the Equality Performance Improvement Toolkit (EPIT) an equality performance tool, 2 years ahead of EDS, as a pilot scheme.
To view NHS Manchester EDHR performance in 2010 using the EPIT process, follow the links for:
The Equality Delivery System intends to target the following performance goals:
- Better Health Outcomes for all
- Improved patient access & experience
- Empowered, engaged & well supported staff
- Inclusive leadership at all levels
Providing the public with EDHR information:
Each year, we will publish information to show what we are doing to:
- Eliminate discrimination in healthcare
- Reduce inequalities in health
- Remove any barriers faced by protected characteristic groups in accessing healthcare
- Foster good relations between different community groups by tackling prejudices and promoting inclusion.
Employment Statistics
As part of our legal duty and commitment to the equalities agenda we annually publish our workforce data. Our latest workforce report on findings from this data is available here:
This information is regularly refreshed and updated.
January 2012