New NHS managers' guide includes gender

A new guide for NHS boards and non-executive directors which addresses issues of equality and human rights includes gender differences.

The Department of Health, the NHS Appointments Commission and the NHS Confederation has published the guide Promoting Equality and Human Rights in the NHS for NHS Boards, and Non-Executive Directors. It contains details of current and imminent legislation, vital statistical information on communities, patients and the workforce, and a set of 15 prompts to enable Boards to embed good equality and human rights practices into their decision-making and the performance of their organisations.

Colin Penning, the MHF's parliamentary officer said: 'The guide covers both appointments and access to treatment and uses gender-related statistics such as the figures on men and suicide and on ethnic-minority men and diabetes to support its arguments. It is a useful document for those campaigning to improve gender sensitivity locally to make NHS managers aware of.'

Health Minister, Rosie Winterton said: 'If the NHS is to maintain and develop its position as a world-class service, it must be a service that treats its patients and staff with fairness, dignity and respect. This means respecting people's age, disability, sexual orientation, gender, race and faith. Discrimination on these grounds, which leads to people being treated unfairly, is unacceptable in the culture and practice of the Department of Health, NHS and social services.

'The guide will help NHS Boards to deliver appropriate, personalised services to the diverse communities they serve and to be employers of choice that recruit, develop and retain the best talent from all communities.'