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UHMBT celebrates Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Week

10 May 2021

Hannah Chandisingh Race Equality Transformation Lead UHMBT.jpgEquality, Diversity and Human Rights Week is being celebrated at University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust (UHMBT) from May 10 to 14 with an online conference taking place throughout the week.

The online ‘Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Conference’ will be opened by Aaron Cummins, Chief Executive of UHMBT and the main speakers will be Dr Sakthi Karunanithi, Director of Public Health for Lancashire County Council and Paul Deemer, Head of Diversity at NHS Employers.

Diversity, equality and human rights are at the heart of UHMBT’s ‘People Strategy’ which aims to create ‘A Great Place to Work and a Great Place to be Cared For’. The Trust works with colleagues to understand and learn from their experiences, data and feedback. It also takes action to address inequalities such as implementing evidence-based best practice and creating a place of belonging for everyone.

UHMBT currently holds the top spot in the ‘Inclusive Companies Top 50 Employers List’ and the Trust has been shortlisted for the ‘Diverse Company Award’ as part of the National Diversity Awards (NDAs). UHMBT is the only shortlisted NHS Trust and the winners of the awards will be announced at an event later in 2021.

During Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Week, colleagues at UHMBT will be looking at how they can act on pledges from the ‘NHS People Promise’ on the subjects of ‘Being a Team’, ‘Recognised and Rewarded’, ‘A Voice That Counts’, ‘Safety and Health’ and ‘Compassion and Inclusivity’.

Diversity EQW2021-logo.pngA discussion on ‘Effortless Inclusion’ will be hosted by Karmini McCann, Head of Culture Transformation for UHMBT and Lynne Wyre, Deputy Chief Nurse of UHMBT. Karmini and Lynne will be looking at how far UHMBT has come over the past five years and where further progress needs to be made to create a truly inclusive workplace and a great place to be cared for.

UHMBT’s flourishing Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Network will host a showcase with a Q&A session and there will be a workshop on ‘Understanding Microaggressions’ by Dr Lakshmi Patil, Chair of the Trust’s BAME Network.

An open meeting on ‘Inclusive Recruitment and Race Equality’ will be chaired by Liesje Turner, Head of Strategic Recruitment, looking at how the Trust is working to change processes, systems and mind-sets to eliminate bias and improve the recruitment experience for everyone.

Hannah Chandisingh, Transformation Lead for Race Equality for UHMBT and the main organiser of the week, will lead a session on ‘Race Equality and the Workforce Race Equality Standard’. After five years of the national ‘Workforce Race Equality Standard’, Hannah will explore the work that has been done and how UHMBT can do things differently.

Yaseen Gani and Syed Askari, BAME Network Leads at UHMBT, will host a session asking ‘What is Ramadan?’ with guests from the Trust’s Anti-Racism Influencers Group. Muslims around the world will be celebrating Eid on May 12 to 13 as they end a month-long fast so Yaseen and Syed will be sharing their experiences and looking at the importance of Ramadan.

Workshops on ‘How to be an Anti-Racist Ally’ will be hosted by UHMBT’s Anti-Racism Influencers Group, looking at what it means to be anti-racist, what a true ally looks like and what actions can be taken to stand in solidarity with friends, family and colleagues.

Ben Maden, Chair of Staff-Side for UHMBT and Daniel Leigh, Staff-Side Inclusion and Diversity Lead for UHMBT, will look at how unions are working with different groups across Morecambe Bay.

The Trust’s LGBT+ Patient and Staff Network will host a session on its work and there will be a practical session for managers exploring how to support transgender colleagues during the transition period.

Lee Jenkinson, LGBT+ Network Chair, will lead a discussion on bi-inclusion and bi-erasure in the LGBT+ community. Bi-erasure is a pervasive problem in which the existence or legitimacy of bisexuality is questioned or denied outright. Lee will also host a session looking at risk-taking behaviour in the LGBT+ community.

Sally Fenton, UHMBT’s Disability Network Chair and Gillian Day, Inclusion and Diversity Advisor for UHMBT, will lead a session on changing processes, systems and mind-sets to eliminate bias in recruitment processes. Sally and Gillian will also hold a session on ‘Understanding Neurodiversity’.

Dr Sakthi Karunanithi, Director of Public Health for Lancashire County Council, will give a talk on ‘Vaccine Inequality’. As COVID-19 has disproportionately impacted ethnic minority people, Dr Karunanithi will explore but how different ethnic minority groups are being supported to take up the COVID-19 vaccine across Lancashire.

There will also be a Tweetchat on Twitter about ‘Autism, Identity and Inclusion’ tagging in @UHMBT @NHSE_Diversity and #AutisticIdentity. Colleagues will be chatting on Twitter with autism experts to discuss the relationship between autism and identity, to listen to autistic voices and understand more clearly how everyone can support autistic people.

The final workshop of the week is a ‘Network of Networks’ led by Matt France, Deputy Director of Organisational Development for UHMBT, which will bring together members of all UHMBT’s staff inclusion networks. As the Trust is nearing the end of its five-year inclusion strategy, colleagues will consider what to do next.

Hannah Chandisingh, Transformation Lead for Race Equality at UHMBT, said: “The last year has been a busy time for us all so Equality, Diversity and Human Rights Week is a great opportunity for us to come together and celebrate some of the successes we have had during a tough year.

“Having taken the decision last year to cancel the week due to COVID-19, now we need to think more about the role of equality, diversity and inclusion as part of our road to recovery and reset through 2021.

“In the wake of COVID-19, which has deepened inequalities across all sectors of society, this year more than ever it is essential for us to focus on equality, diversity and human rights and improving the experiences of our colleagues and patients. The NHS was established on the key principles of social justice and equity; principles which play a key role in patient care. I cannot think of a more important time for us to actively work to those values.”

Lynne Wyre, Deputy Chief Nurse for UHMBT, added: “We are delighted to be hosting this online conference for our colleagues which will explore a vast range of subjects relating to equality, diversity and human rights. We are fully committed to this agenda and will constantly strive for equality and inclusivity to benefit all of our colleagues, patients and the communities we serve.”

You can follow the week on Twitter at @UHMBT #EQW2021 @NHSE_Diversity

ENDS

Notes for editors:

The online conference is an internal event for UHMBT staff and is not open to the general public. Anyone can join in the Twitter chat by following @UHMBT

Photo caption: Hannah Chandisingh, Race Equality Lead for UHMBT

For more information on Equality Diversity and Human Rights Week, please go to this link: https://www.nhsemployers.org/retention-and-staff-experience/diversity-and-inclusion/campaigns-and-events/eqw2021

For further details about this media release, please email, communications.team@mbht.nhs.uk