Introduction
Welcome to the Inclusion directorate webpage. We are committed to playing our part in contributing towards the NHS vision of providing a fair service which is equally available to all, taking account of individual’s personal circumstances and the diverse background they come from.
Inclusion and fairness for all is at the heart of our business which supports the first principle of the NHS Constitution:
“The NHS provides a comprehensive service available to all irrespective of gender, race disability, age, sexual orientation, religion or belief. It has a duty to each and every individual that it services and must respect their human rights.
"At the same time, it has a wider social duty to promote equality through the services it provides and to pay particular attention to groups or sections of society where improvements in health and life expectancy are not keeping pace with the rest of the population.”
(NHS Constitution:2009)
Inclusion
For us, Inclusion is “the overarching strand encompassing equality, diversity and human rights that focuses on individuals and groups which may feel, or are excluded, from the services and employment opportunities provided by NHS organisations”.
We have adopted the Government's Social Exclusion Unit (2004) definition of exclusion which can occur:
“when people or areas suffer from a combination of linked problems such as unemployment, discrimination, poor skills, low incomes, poor housing, high crime, bad health and family breakdown” leading to them being excluded from the services and opportunities enjoyed by those in the political, economic and social mainstream of society.
Our inclusion vision
Our Inclusion vision is to “make regional NHS organisations the best NHS commissioner and providers within the United Kingdom and beyond, by proactively including individuals and groups that may feel, or are being, excluded from the services and employment opportunities provided by NHS organisations within the East Midlands.”
We still have a lot to include in the Inclusion section of this website including examples of good practice within the East Midlands and various Inclusion programmes being delivered to benefit patients, carers and users. I do hope you will find the webpage useful and I would welcome comments on our definition and vision of Inclusion which is being consulted and further debated within Strategic Health Authority and with our NHS organisations including organisations in the third and voluntary sector.
Maqsood Ahmad
Director of Inclusion
