Hospital Policy on Reasonable Adjustments under the Equality Act 2010
Ryan Jarvis made this Freedom of Information request to Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust as part of a batch sent to 137 authorities This request has been closed to new correspondence. Contact us if you think it should be reopened.
Dear Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust,
I am writing to make a formal request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 regarding any policy and procedures related to the identification and implementation of reasonable adjustments for patients with disabilities, in accordance with the Equality Act 2010.
The Equality Act 2010 imposes a legal duty on organisations, including healthcare providers, to make reasonable adjustments to their services to ensure that they are accessible to individuals with disabilities, and on par with services provided to individuals without disabilities. It has come to my attention that you utilise the Reasonable Adjustment Flag on the National Care Records Service (NCRS) to record, share, and view details of reasonable adjustments for patients across the NHS in England. I am interested in understanding how you implement and adhere to this policy to ensure equitable healthcare access for patients with disabilities.
Therefore, I kindly request the following information:
A copy of your policy or guidelines regarding the identification and implementation of reasonable adjustments for patients under the Equality Act 2010.
Information on the processes and procedures in place for health and care workers within your organisation to record and communicate reasonable adjustments for patients, including the use of the Reasonable Adjustment Flag on the NCRS.
Details about the categories of adjustments and types of adjustments that can be recorded for patients on the Reasonable Adjustment Flag, as specified in the NHS guidance.
Any documents or guidelines that you provide to your staff regarding the assessment and recording of patients' needs for reasonable adjustments, including communication requirements and impairments.
Information on how you ensure that reasonable adjustments are applied promptly and consistently across all care settings within the hospital.
Any data or statistics related to the number of patients within your organisation who have been flagged as needing reasonable adjustments, and the types of adjustments commonly provided.
Information on how you comply with the legal obligation under the Equality Act 2010 to make anticipatory reasonable adjustments, particularly in cases where patients are referred or present for care.
Any additional documentation, reports, or guidance related to your efforts to satisfy your legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and NHS contracts.
Details on any training or education provided to staff within your organisation regarding reasonable adjustments for patients with disabilities.
The contact information of the designated individual or department responsible for overseeing the implementation of reasonable adjustments within your organisation.
Please provide the requested information in electronic format where possible, and within the statutory timeframe of 20 working days, as stipulated by the Freedom of Information Act 2000.
If there are any fees associated with processing this request, please inform me in advance. If you require any clarification or further information to fulfill this request, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I understand the importance of complying with the law and ensuring that individuals with disabilities receive equitable healthcare services. Your assistance in providing this information will greatly contribute to our collective understanding of how hospitals like yours work to fulfill these vital obligations.
Thank you for your attention to this matter, and I look forward to receiving the requested information in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Mr Ryan Jarvis
Hello,
Thank you for your recent Freedom of Information request. Freedom of information only applies to corporate information; this e-mail confirms receipt of your request for this type of information only.
Under the terms of the Freedom of Information Act we will expect to respond to this request in 20 working days. However we are now investigating the nature of the search and the quantity of information requested. If there is a cost involved in collecting the information then we will suspend the period for response until such time as we receive your payment. We will advise you of any such costs.
In accordance with section 12 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 where multiple requests for information are received from one person or by different persons who appear to be acting in together in a single campaign the estimated cost of complying with any of the requests is to be taken to be the estimated total cost of complying with all of them. To this effect your requests for information will be dealt with under the single reference number above.
There are also a number of exemptions which the Act permits with respect to releasing information. The information will be assessed for these exemptions prior to us releasing the information to you. We will advise you if we are unable to provide the information requested.
Please note that a significant amount of information is also available via our Publication Scheme which can be accessed via the Trust’s website http://www.coch.nhs.uk/ and one of its benefits is that it makes information easily accessible and without charge.
Best Wishes,
Freedom of Information Officer
Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Dear Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust,
Please pass this on to the person who conducts Freedom of Information reviews.
I am writing to request an internal review of Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust's handling of my FOI request 'Hospital Policy on Reasonable Adjustments under the Equality Act 2010'.
Response to this request is long overdue. By law, under all circumstances, Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust should have responded by now.
A full history of my FOI request and all correspondence is available on the Internet at this address: https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/h...
Yours faithfully,
Mr Ryan Jarvis
Ryan Jarvis left an annotation ()
As per advice from the ICO this request has been resubmitted as a new request which can be accessed here:-
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/h...
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Ryan Jarvis left an annotation ()
Formal complaint submitted to the Information Commissioner for non compliance with the Freedom of Information Act.