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Our community, we care, you matter...

Equality and Diversity

Meeting the health care needs of members of our local equality and diversity communities is an integral part of the comprehensive health care services provided by NHS Orkney. In addition, we also carry out specific targeted work and campaigns to benefit members of these communities.

The Equality Act 2010 defined the 9 “protected characteristics” of equality as:

  • Race
  • Disability
  • Age
  • Sex (male or female)
  • Sexual orientation
  • Gender reassignment
  • Pregnancy and maternity
  • Marriage and civil partnership
  • Religion or belief

Everyone has the legal right to protection from discrimination arising from one or more of these protected characteristics.

Our work in each of these areas is designed to:

  • eliminate discrimination, harassment, victimisation and any other conduct that is prohibited under this Act
  • advance equality of opportunity between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it
  • foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic and persons who do not share it

We also take every opportunity to involve people with a protected characteristic in our work, as well as their representative organisations and the wider community of Orkney. 

The Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012 require that public bodies such as NHS Orkney must produce and publish a range of reports at regular intervals. The reports must detail the progress we have made in the area of each protected characteristic, both in the services we provide, and within NHS Orkney. You will find all of these reports under related documents, with other relevant information below.

Meeting your support needs

Why do we need to ask so many questions? We can only help you if you tell us about the type of support you need from us.

Meeting your support needs

Equality and Diversity Impact Assessments

The Board conducts impact assessments in relation to our equalities duties, on all policies and strategies.

As required by legislation NHS Orkney publishes on its website a list of  the policies, strategies and re-organisational proposals which have been Equality and Diversity Impact assessed. Copies of the Rapid Impact Assessment Checklist (RIC) RIC Summary Sheet and Comments Sheet are available on request, for any policy listed. Copies of full EQIA documentation, when this has been undertaken for a policy, strategy or re-organisational proposal, will also be provided.

 

NHS Orkney documents which have been Equality and Diversity Impact Assessed 

  • The NHS Orkney Primary Care Improvement Plan 2018-2021, in July 2018
  • The NHS Orkney Business Continuity Management Document, in July 2018
  • NHS Orkney Guidance for Staff on Blood Borne Virus Testing, October 2018
  • NHS Orkney Water Safety Policy, December 2018
  • NHS Orkney Policy for Working Procedures Relating to Display Screen Equipment, May 2019
  • NHS Grampian, NHS Orkney and NHS Shetland Patient Group Direction for the Administration of Meningococcal ACWY Conjugate Vaccine by approved Healthcare Professionals working within NHS Grampian, NHS Orkney and NHS Shetland, June 2019
  • NHS Orkney Smoking Plan, October 2019

If you would like a copy of any of these Equality and Diversity Impact Assessments, please contact ork.hb.feedback@nhs.net or phone 01856 888100 during office hours. 

NHS Orkney British Sign Language (BSL) Plan

The NHS Orkney British Sign Language Plan can be found here and is also available in large print and other formats and languages, upon request.

For further information, please e-mail Nigel Firth on Nigel.firth@nhs.net 

Getting in touch

We shall be delighted to hear from you, so here are the various ways of contacting us:

The Balfour

By telephone to:
01856 888100
(during office hours)

01856 888000
(out of hours)

By e-mail to:
ORK.feedback@nhs.scot

By letter to the address below:

Foreland Road
Kirkwall
Orkney
KW15 1NZ