Information Governance
Warwick Hospital
Lakin Road
Warwick
CV34 5BW

Tel: 01926 495321
Email: [South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust request email]

Dear Ryan Jarvis

We acknowledge receipt of your email to South Warwickshire NHS Foundation
Trust:

Freedom of Information request - Hospital Policy on Reasonable Adjustments
under the Equality Act 2010

If you have submitted a request under the Freedom of Information Act
(FOIA) or the Environmental Information Regulations (EIR), your request
will be considered and you will receive our response within the statutory
timescale of 20 working days.

The reference number for your email is FOI/1680.

Should you have any further inquiries concerning this matter, please reply
to this email leaving the subject line unchanged.

Yours sincerely,
South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust

%%largefileattachment%%

 
Information Governance
Warwick Hospital
Lakin Road
Warwick
CV34 5BW

Tel: 01926 495321
Email: [South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust request email]

Ref No:FOI/1680
 
Dear Ryan Jarvis 

 
Thank you for your request for Information under the Freedom of
Information Act.

Please see the response to your request below and attached.

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:

1. A copy of your policy or guidelines regarding the identification and
implementation of reasonable adjustments for patients under the Equality
Act 2010. - We do not have a single policy that covers the Equality Act as
the intention is to include the principles of it in all policies,
procedures, business cases, guidelines, service reviews and designs.  All
those are subject to an Equality Impact Assessment which form a part
of each of those documents / processes.

2. 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. - This information is primarily recorded onto the
Trust's Electronic Patient Record. Please see attached the Managing Alerts
Policy and Communications around visual needs accessibility.

3. 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.- The Trust's Patient EPR system have the
following alert types of 'communication and accessibility' and
'impairment' which have the below alerts assigned to them which staff can
select and attach to the patient record.

Communication and Accessibility
Cognitive impairment - not dementia (easy read format)
Educational need (easy read format)
Hearing need
Mobility need
Visual need - Braille
Visual need - Large print 16pt
Visual need - Large print 20pt
Visual need - Large print 24pt
Visual need - Large print 28pt

Impairment
Communication difficulties
Cognitive impairment
Cognitive impairment - Dementia
Autistic Spectrum Disorder
Dementia
Housebound
Learning disability
Mobility difficulties
Other - see description
Visual impairment

Escalation and Care Decision
ADRT - Advanced refusal to treatment
Advance care plan
Advanced directive
Children
Children purple pages
EPACCS - Castle register
ReSPECT

Staff can put an alert on as above to the Trust's Electronic Patient
Record. The users have the ability to access the Reasonable Flag on NCRS
which may contain this information if it has been added by a member of the
Trust staff, GP or another organisation.
4. 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. - This information
is primarily recorded onto the Trust's Electronic Patient Record. Please
see attached the Managing Alerts Policy and Communications around visual
needs accessibility.

5. Information on how you ensure that reasonable adjustments are applied
promptly and consistently across all care settings within the hospital. -
The standard nursing assessment / admission documents asks about hearing,
sight, speech, mobility, pain, continence, nutrition, falls risk, skin
integrity, and mental capacity. There is a facility to put a flag on
patients with a specific need or alert on our Lorenzo system.

6. 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. - We do not hold this
information

7. 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. -
This is embedded throughout all patient care.

8. Any additional documentation, reports, or guidance related to your
efforts to satisfy your legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and
NHS contracts. - Please see attached the Disability Policy and Annual
Equality and Diversity Board Report.

9. Details on any training or education provided to staff within your
organisation regarding reasonable adjustments for patients with
disabilities. - There is not a specific training session on reasonable
adjustments, it would be embedded in the care for the patient as
individuals with individual needs and this is impressed throughout
undergraduate training, post graduate training and health care support
worker training

10. The contact information of the designated individual or department
responsible for overseeing the implementation of reasonable adjustments
within your organisation. - [email address] 

If you are unhappy with the service you have received in relation to your
request and would like a review of our response please email [email
address], or write to Information Governance, Pickering's Building, 1st
Floor, Warwick Hospital, Millers Road, Warwick, CV34 5AN
If you are not content with the outcome of your review, you may apply
directly to the Information Commissioner for a decision. Generally, the
ICO cannot make a decision unless you have exhausted the complaints
procedure provided by the South Warwickshire NHS Foundation Trust. The
Information Commissioner can be contacted at:
FOI/EIR Complaints Resolution
Information Commissioner's Office
Wycliffe House
Water Lane
Wilmslow
Cheshire
SK9 5AF

Or via their website www.ico.org.uk/contactus, or by telephone on 0303 123
1113

The Trust always seeks feedback on how it handles requests made under the
Freedom of Information Act. If you wish to provide feedback please e-mail;
[email address]

Kind regards
FOI Team