Equality is fairness that makes sure all people have equal and fair access to services like treatment, doctors and medications. It is being equal in terms of status, rights or opportunities where all individuals are treated equally in law. In health and social care (HSC), it ensures that everyone has equal rights and opportunities.
Diversity is the recognition that every person is different and it is important to value the differences. It is in contrast to equality where every individual is recognized as different belonging to varied groups and it is important to treat every person as they are and value their diversity in the workforce, community and the society as a whole. Every need and requirement of a person should be understood valuing his or her diversity within the HSC service delivery and employment practice.
Rights in HSC are regarded as legal entitlements where a person has the right to live without any intimidation or abuse because of his or her gender, race, colour, skin, culture or beliefs (Thompson 2016).
People using services in HSC experiencing discrimination may feel marginalized. They may feel, as they are not considered as a part of the main group in the community. It has severe psychological effects on the individuals perceiving discrimination while using HSC services and affect mental health. These circumstances can lead to severe mental health problems like increased stress, depression and anxiety. When people see discrimination happening to others, they start losing their self-esteem before using the HSC services. When an individual experience low self-esteem, they are subjected to negative self-identity that can result to depression. The emotional and physical impact of discrimination results in sadness, anxiety, feeling of guilt, emptiness and depression. They feel extremely distressed while using HSC services as they may be subjected to racial discrimination (Turner and Clegg 2014).
Discriminatory practice in HSC is the discrimination against service users because of their age, gender or because they belong to disadvantaged or marginalized groups. Discrimination make people feel that they are not the part of the main society and have restricted access to HSC services leading to poorer health. The impact of discriminatory practice is big and affects people in many ways like disempowerment, stigmatization and restricted opportunities. People feel depressed and pose negative effect on them, as they feel hurt mentally and physically. There might also be aggression in the people experiencing hardship or change in behaviour like frustration or agitation in them. There can also be low-esteem among the people who experience discrimination due to negative identity that can cause depression in them (Care Quality Commission 2012).
Discrimination prevails in HSC and affect service users experiencing it in many ways. It is catastrophic in nature and affects them negatively. Marginalization is also experienced where the service users are pushed to the margins of the society and they are unable to participate in the available HSC services. Some individuals who are being marginalized are excluded from participation and are socially excluded. Moreover, they are denied access to their rights, opportunities and resources.
Disempowerment is also seen in HSC service users where a whole group is discriminated against others and as a result, they feel disempowered. Negative emotions evoke in the service users as they start becoming self-obsessed, depressed, excluded, withdrawn, low self-worth and helpless.
Negative behaviour comes naturally when someone is being bullied and makes them frustrated because they receive unfair treatment in using HSC services. In HSC, a person who is being discriminated, feel powerless and grief is expressed in agitation or aggression (Shavers et al. 2012).
Many acts have been developed to safeguard individuals’ rights and protect them from discrimination of any kind. The Human Rights Act, 1988 was developed with an aim where every person is treated equally with dignity, respect and fairness. HSC is also underpinned by core values of Respect, Equality, Fairness, Autonomy and Dignity. Age Discrimination Act, 2006 also came into force at employment and training where it is unlawful to harass, discriminate or victimize any employee, trainee or job applicant on grounds of colour, race, sex, religion or cultural backgrounds. The Equality Act 2010 also protects individuals from discrimination at workplaces and society. This Act is easy to understand and strengthens protection of people against unlawful treatment and discrimination. Race Relations Act 1965 was developed against racial discrimination and protects people on grounds of race, colour, culture or ethnicity (Beresford and Boxall 2012).
Age Discrimination Act under Age Discrimination Act 2010 protects people against discrimination on grounds of age at workplaces and provision of services. In HSC, this act is also employed where it prohibits harmful treatment and unfair discrimination based on age. There should be no differential treatment in the provision of HSC services being unjustified and unfair. This Act also outlines that one should not be discriminated, harassed or victimized on grounds of age in terms of employment opportunities, at workplaces and vocational training (employees, employers and trainees). In HSC, people are protected against discrimination that is aimed at changing the quality of individuals’ life and promote value, equality, respect and diversity of the service users. HSC service providers help to improve the standard of care ensuring understanding, involvement, information, asking and priority of the service users (Shah et al. 2013).
The Mental Health Act 2007 is concerned with the mental disorder of an individual who is detained for medical treatment without the patients’ consent. This act sets out guidelines and processes for the healthcare providers to safeguard patients with mental health disorders against improper treatment and treatment without consent. This Act ensure that individuals with severe mental health disorders whose safety is threatened or safety of other people irrespective of his or her consent should be protected from injuring themselves and others. In HSC, this act supports a person in making a decision that is possible, acting in the best interests of them, and least restrictive that are applied in the decision-making process and related procedures (Singh et al. 2014).
Anti-discriminatory practice in HSC is practiced where HSC staffs promote equality among the service users in terms of beliefs, race, disability, mental health, cognitive ability and disability. It is a type of good practice where the worker promotes equality, respect and value diversity by promoting their rights and always putting the service user or patient at the heart of the service provision. HSC service providers work to fulfil the individual needs and plan how to achieve them. The promotion of anti-discriminatory practice in HSC involves providing information to people so that they are able to make their informed choices and take decisions that can help to run these services. The service user is being asked what they want and choose for them instead of making decisions. It is important for the HSC workers to recognize the rights of service users and protect them from discrimination by supporting them to make their choices and preferences and promoting equality (Ocloo and Fulop 2012).
The HSC service providers may not understand the importance of promoting anti-discrimination practice in their practice and treat every service user with respect and dignity. Every HSC worker has certain set of beliefs and therefore, they may not promote anti-discriminatory practice and become judgmental while providing care. Many service providers may not respect the rights of the service users, their well-being and personal preferences, it is when the problem arises, and negative behaviour evokes discrimination. Funding is another big issue that make it hard for the providers to be adequately trained in anti-discrimination practices and promote equality in their provision of care (Glasby 2017).
The ways to overcome the above mentioned barriers by promoting anti-discriminatory practice among service providers and public by creating awareness among them. The active promotion of anti-discriminatory practice can be done by providing active support to the service users with consistent culture, beliefs and preferences. Another way of overcoming the barrier is to provide adequate training to the healthcare service providers so that they understand the importance of anti-discrimination and practice them in their daily life. Moreover, this would help to promote equality where every person would be given equal care within HSC environment and help him or her to live in a society where they feel empowered and confident in leading a normal life (Ixer 2012).
References
Beresford, P. and Boxall, K., 2012. Service users, social work education and knowledge for social work practice. Social Work Education, 31(2), pp.155-167.
Care Quality Commission, 2012. The state of health care and adult social care in England in 2011/12 (Vol. 763). The Stationery Office.
Glasby, J., 2017. Understanding health and social care, pp. 26-32, Policy Press.
Ixer, G., 2012. Developing the relationship between reflective practice and social work values. The Journal of Practice Teaching and Learning, 5(1), pp.7-22.
Ocloo, J.E. and Fulop, N.J., 2012. Developing a ‘critical’approach to patient and public involvement in patient safety in the NHS: learning lessons from other parts of the public sector?. Health Expectations, 15(4), pp.424-432.
Shah, K.K., Cookson, R., Culyer, A.J. and Littlejohns, P., 2013. NICE’s social value judgements about equity in health and health care. Health Economics, Policy and Law, 8(2), pp.145-165.
Shavers, V.L., Fagan, P., Jones, D., Klein, W.M., Boyington, J., Moten, C. and Rorie, E., 2012. The state of research on racial/ethnic discrimination in the receipt of health care. American Journal of Public Health, 102(5), pp.953-966.
Singh, S.P., Burns, T., Tyrer, P., Islam, Z., Parsons, H. and Crawford, M.J., 2014. Ethnicity as a predictor of detention under the Mental Health Act. Psychological medicine, 44(5), pp.997-1004.
Thompson, N., 2016. Anti-discriminatory practice: Equality, diversity and social justice, pp.5-10, Palgrave Macmillan.
Turner, G. and Clegg, A., 2014. Best practice guidelines for the management of frailty: a British Geriatrics Society, Age UK and Royal College of General Practitioners report. Age and ageing, 43(6), pp.744-747.
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