Whether you are a GP, nurse, practice manager, eye clinic or hospital staff member, the way that you deal with blind or partially sighted patients may need to change as a result of the introduction of the Equality Act.
The following section highlight areas that you might need to think about, as well as pointing you to more in-depth information.
Serving blind or partially sighted patients
Understanding the needs of blind or partially sighted patients is vital. It is worth remembering that your business or service is liable for staff members who are not aware of - or are not following - the correct procedures.
RNIB solutions
Other resources
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The Government Equalities Office provides "Quick Start" guides to help you understand the implications of the Equality Act on your business or organisation.
Printed information
For patients, receiving medical information or information about prescriptions or appointments in a format that they can access, is crucially important.
The Equality Act clearly outlines that 'reasonable adjustments' must be made to ensure patients or customers do not experience any barriers to accessing information or services.
For health professionals, care must be taken to ensure that these 'reasonable adjustments' are in place for blind and partially sighted patients and that some thought is put into the type of information being delivered.
If you are a large organisation, it may be reasonable for you to have internal policies, procedures or technical solutions that ensure access to printed materials is routinely available to blind and partially sighted people in preferred or alternative formats they can access.
Small or medium-sized organisations still have to consider the needs of blind and partially sighted patients, but it may be reasonable for them to employ less technically dependent alternative formats. Some examples are outlined below:
Diagnosis
Is the blind or partially sighted patient receiving a potentially shocking diagnosis? Patients may feel that it is not reasonable to expect them to understand the diagnosis after it being delivered to them only once, verbally. It is unreasonable to expect them to read standard print test results. It would be reasonable to offer a large print record of their diagnosis or provide a recording of the message.
Additionally, privacy is important. It may not be reasonable for a blind or partially sighted patient to have to bring a sighted person along to help make notes about their diagnosis. Blind and partially sighted people should have the right to privacy in these types of situations.
Medication
Prescription medicine can present blind and partially sighted people with problems. If they are unable to remind themselves of their dosage, especially when they have multiple medications to take, there could be dangerous consequences. It is unreasonable to expect blind and partially sighted people to remember their dosages for medication.
It would be reasonable, for example, to provide the information in any other format that the patient could access, such as large print or audio.
Medical appointments
Communication with blind and partially sighted people about future medical appointments will require careful consideration. It is unreasonable to expect blind or partially sighted people to accept information about future appointments that they cannot easily read or access.
RNIB solutions
Other resources
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The Government Equalities Office provides "Quick Start" guides to help you understand the implications of the Equality Act on your business or organisation.
Your premises
Hospitals, GP surgeries and eye clinics can be confusing for many people, whether they are fully sighted or not. There are many small adjustments that can be made to ensure signage is clearly visible and that doors are well marked - it is helpful to ensure that walls and doors are painted in contrasting colours.
Make sure you have good lighting throughout your premises, especially toilets, corridors, stairwells and car parks.
Solutions
Other resources
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The Government Equalities Office provides a series of "Quick Start" guides to help you understand the implications of the Equality Act on your business or organisation.
Websites and email communication
Many patients may wish to view your website before attending an appointment, perhaps to check directions. It makes a great difference to blind and partially sighted people to be able to check details like this online through an accessible website. There are many steps you can take to improve the accessibility of your website, from technical changes to simply making links and navigation clear and logical.
Your website is a great place for you to communicate about the progress you have made, in terms of your provision of accessible information and premises, so make sure you regularly update this kind of information.
Solutions
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RNIB's Web Access Centre offers information and advice on making your website accessible to everyone. Discover more about the services available.
Other resources
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The Government Equalities Office provides a series of "Quick Start" guides to help you understand the implications of the Equality Act on your business or organisation.
Further information and support
There are a number of organisations that offer more in-depth information about the Act. You can find some of these organisations on our Equality Act - further information and support page.