Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Week (15th to 19th May) was celebrated at the Trust with events to raise awareness of unseen disabilities such as hearing loss and visual impairment.
Conquest Hospital
Bexhill Hospital
Eastbourne DGH
Simulation sensory loss sessions were held at Bexhill Hospital, Conquest Hospital and Eastbourne DGH where staff, patients and visitors were challenged to read a leaflet and eat a cream tea whilst wearing sight loss goggles. There was also the opportunity to try some of the resources available to help those with hearing loss or visual impairment and to find out more about the Accessible Information Standard, which was introduced by NHS England last year with the aim of making sure that communication support is available for anyone who needs it.
The Equality team were on hand to provide advice, support and information and members of staff were able to find out more about learning British Sign Language, which will be introduced later in the year for those in patient facing roles.
Kim Novis, Head of Equality, Diversity and Human Rights at the Trust, said: “Equality is such an important part of everyone’s life every day, yet often it is given little thought. At ESHT we hold Equality in the highest regard with dedicated leaders consistently promoting innovation, diversity and inclusion in many ways.
“I am truly proud of the work staff consistently do, always rising to new challenges and going beyond to ensure they meet the needs of every individual. It can be difficult to truly understand barriers if we haven’t experienced them and whilst we cannot experience every barrier, we listen, understand and work with individuals to ensure they receive the best experience of the Trust.”
Dr Adrian Bull, Chief Executive of the Trust, said: “We are proud to be an organisation that embraces diversity and difference. We have a workforce that represents a comprehensive range of nationalities, ethnicities, cultures, and lifestyles. Each brings their own rich perspective to the work that we do and we are the better for it.”