Privacy and Dignity

 

Delivering Same-Sex Accommodation – Your Privacy, Our Responsibility Programme

Declaration of Compliance

"NEPFT is pleased to confirm that we are compliant with the Government's requirement to eliminate mixed-sex accommodation, except when it is in the patient' s overall best interest, or reflects their personal choice.

We have the necessary facilities, resources and culture to ensure that patients who are admitted to our hospitals will only share the room where they sleep with members of the same sex, and same-sex toilets and bathrooms will be close to their bed area. Adjacent rooms with members of the opposite sex will only happen when clinically necessary (for example where high risk patients require additional observation).

If our care should fall short of the required standard, we will report it. We will also set up an audit mechanism to make sure that we do not misclassify any of our reports. We will publish the results of that audit on our website."

What does Same-Sex Accommodation mean in practice?

It is of paramount importance that all areas of healthcare apply the very highest standards of privacy and dignity. This means that men and women will not have to sleep in the same room or have to share toilet and washing facilities. Service users should not have to pass through areas used by the opposite sex to reach their own facilities.

Same-Sex accommodation can be provided in the following ways:

  1. Single sex wards, these are ward environments solely occupied by one gender
  2. Wards providing single rooms with separate toilet and washing facilities
  3. Mixed gender wards where men and women are in separate bays or rooms with separate toilet and washing facilities

North Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is committed to ensuring the very highest standards of Privacy and Dignity are given to all our service users.

North Essex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has undertaken a detailed assessment of all its in-patient environments and we are pleased to confirm that all of these are compliant with the Same Sex Accommodation; Your privacy, our responsibility programme in 2011.

We have published our action plan alongside this statement. For our Trust's action plan, revised in April 2012 click here

We will ensure that all new builds and refurbishment of existing buildings will fully comply with the standards set out in the Your Privacy, Our Responsibility programme. Our compliance will be measured regularly through Patient Environment Action Team (PEAT) assessment process, patient surveys and through complaints monitoring.

What should I do if I think I am in mixed sex accommodation?

If you have any concerns about your accommodation while being cared for by our Trust, please contact our Making Experiences Count team.


For more information please contact Paul Keedwell.

Andrew Geldard

Chief Executive