Your Privacy, Our Responsibility

Privacy, dignity and same-sex accommodation

The NHS is committed to making sure that all patients receive high-quality care that is safe, effective and focused on their needs. The NHS Constitution states that all patients have the right to privacy and to be treated with dignity and respect. We believe that providing same-sex accommodation is an effective way of helping to achieve this goal and of giving all patients the best possible experience while they are in hospital.

Everyone working in the NHS has a vital part to play in achieving the goal of virtually eliminating mixed-sex accommodation by April 2010, and ensuring that all patients feel as comfortable and relaxed as possible during their time in hospital.

NHS organisations in Yorkshire and the Humber have made tremendous progress in improving patient privacy and dignity and significantly reducing the number of patients being treated on mixed sex wards since Delivering Same-Sex Accommodation programme began early in 2009.

NHS Yorkshire and the Humber published a report on progress in achieving this standard across the region in December 2009.

For further information please view the report

Delivering Same-Sex Accommodation Privacy and Dignity Challenge Fund Report.

Since then NHS organisations in Yorkshire and the Humber have made even more progress in improving patient privacy and dignity by committing to provide every patient with same-sex accommodation

Yorkshire and the Humber trusts commit to virtually eliminate mixed-sex accommodation

By 31^st March 2010 all trusts are required to publish statements to confirm that they have virtually eliminated mixed-sex accommodation. Links to the statements of each trust in the Yorkshire and the Humber region are included at the end of this page.

What do we mean by same-sex accommodation?

Same sex-accommodation means:

· The room where your bed is will only have patients of the same sex as you

· Your toilet and bathroom will be just for your gender, and will be close to your bed area

It is possible that there will be both men and women patients on the ward, but they will not share your sleeping area. You may have to cross a ward corridor to reach your bathroom, but you will not have to walk through opposite-sex areas.

You may share some communal space, such as day rooms or dining rooms, and it is very likely that you will see both men and women patients as you move around the hospital (eg on your way to X-ray or the operating theatre).

It is probable that visitors of the opposite gender will come into the room where your bed is, and this may include patients visiting each other.

It is almost certain that both male and female nurses, doctors and other staff will come into your bed area.

If you need help to use the toilet or take a bath (eg you need a hoist or special bath) then you may be taken to a “unisex” bathroom used by both men and women, but a member of staff will be with you, and other patients will not be in the bathroom at the same time.

In mental health and learning disabilities services A female-only lounge should be made available and separate dining areas should be considered.

The NHS will not turn patients away just because a “right-sex” bed is not immediately available

How are we doing in Yorkshire and the Humber?

NHS Yorkshire and the Humber received £10.5 million of government funding from the Privacy and Dignity Challenge Fund set up by the Department of Health last January to help trusts improve their hospital environments and patient privacy and dignity. This money has been used to undertake 92 schemes ranging from building programmes, bed management schemes to patient information and staff training to ensure the provision of same-sex accommodation throughout the region.

Projects include:

Providing more toilets, bathrooms and showers in our hospitals and other care providers
Converting nightingale wards into single sex bays
More single rooms with en-suite facilities
Improving physical segregation of male and female patients
Creating a new single gender adolescent facility
Providing improved signage and patient information

Each primary care trust in Yorkshire and the Humber has an action plan in place to ensure significant improvements, both in terms of patient experience and facilities by 30th of June 2009.

And patients have been playing a key role in deciding what alterations need to be made in their local area and they now form a part of the Yorkshire and Humber taskforce, that is overseeing the process regionally and ensuring primary care trust plans meet national guidelines.

The links below take you to Yorkshire and the Humber NHS organisations’ statements of compliance and plans for the future to ensure provision of same-sex accommodation:

Airedale NHS Trust

Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

NHS Barnsley

NHS Bradford & Airedale

Bradford District Care Trust

Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust

NHS Calderdale

Doncaster & Bassetlaw Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

NHS Doncaster

East Riding of Yorkshire PCT

Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust