1. Disability Equality for the NHS NHS CEHR/DRC - 2006
Disability Rights Commission
Comisiwn Hawliau Anabledd
Disability Equality for the NHS
NHS CEHR/DRC
Amelia John - Acting Director (Wales)

2. Disability Equality Duty
Disability Discrimination Act 2005 (DDA) – DED into force from 4th December 2006
General duty to promote disability equality
Specific duty – main focus of which is Disability Equality Scheme

3. DED General Duty
Public authorities must have due regard to the need to:
Promote equality of opportunity
Eliminate unlawful discrimination
Eliminate disability related harassment
Promote positive attitudes
Encourage participation in public life
Take account of person’s disability/impairment even where more favourable treatment

4. What will the DED mean for all public authorities?
Tackling institutional discrimination
Proactive action to combat discrimination and actively promote disability equality
Not the same as Race Equality Duty
Focus on outcomes for disabled people

5. Why a Disability Equality Duty?
Historic institutional exclusion of disabled people
1 in 5 people in Wales are disabled people
24% of disabled people no qualifications, 13% of non-disabled people
Disabled people twice as likely to be unemployed - 40% of those out of work
Disabled people die younger – Formal Investigation –

6. How will the Disability Equality Duty help you?
The DED will help you to:
Improve performance in provision of health services
Improve health within your local communities
Strengthen community organisations and community cohesion

7. The Specific Duty – publishing a Disability Equality Scheme
DES must include a statement of:
Way in which disabled people involved
Methods for impact assessment
Action Plan of how fulfil DED
Arrangements for gathering information
How it will use information gathered

8. Involvement of disabled people
Who?
Those disabled people who have an interest in the way functions carried out
Full diversity of disabled people including ‘seldom heard from’/’hard to reach’ people
When?
From the outset and at every stage
Should be continued beyond publication of DES

9. Involvement (continued)
How?
Budget
Existing mechanisms e.g. PPI,disabled staff networks,Community Health Councils
Local disability organisations
New mechanisms/creative thinking
Focused and ‘joined up’ – risk of involvement fatigue

10. What does DED mean for the NHS?
Equal health outcomes -
Tackling the fact that disabled people are dying earlier and becoming ill more often – i.e. addressing health inequalities will be central to DED
Independent living agenda must be embraced – provide disabled people with choice, control, freedom and equality

11. Overcoming institutional barriers
Barriers are numerous e.g.
Access to quality healthcare and healthy lifestyles
e.g. where disabled people live in residential, nursing homes, supported living, secure settings
Access to 5 portions of fruit and vegetables?
Ability to take exercise?
Access to GP
Appropriate use of procurement, commissioning, standard setting and inspection to address this

12. Embedding DED within health planning
Ensure disabled people’s health needs comprehensively addressed in health plans and mainstream public initiatives to achieve equality of outcome, e.g.:
Health, Social Care and Wellbeing Strategies
Improved access to screening and health checks
Disability equality impact assessment of plans and projects

13. Meeting the requirements of the Disability Discrimination Act
Don’t forget the existing Part II and Part III duties!
Improve systems for finding out patients’ access requirements and meeting them
Staff attitudes, awareness, communication, time, flexibility as important as physical access
Inspection and enforcement

14. DRC guidance on the DED for the Health Sector
Disability Rights Commission
Comisiwn Hawliau Anabledd
Coming soon:
DRC guidance on the DED for the Health Sector
DRC health inequalities Formal Investigation findings –
Disability Agenda
Helpline for smaller employers
DED Code of Practice
Employment C of P