What act legally protects protected characteristics
equality act 2010
why was the equality act 2010 created
to protect individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair and more equal society
what are the 9 protected characteristics
- age
- disability
- gender
- gender reassignment
- marriage/ civil partnership
- pregnancy and maternity
- race and ethnicity
- religion and belief
- sexual orientation
what’s the relevance to the 9 protected characteristics
it's the law can't discriminate reasonable adjustments colleagues/employees patients GDC standards
What GDC principle is protected characteristics relevant to
- put patient’s interests first
- 2- treat every patient with dignity and respect at all times
- 4- take a holistic and preventative approach to patient care which is appropriate to the individual patient
- 6- treat patients fairly, as individuals and without discrimination
- 9- find out about laws and regulations that affect your work and follow them
what does standard 1.6 state
you must not discriminate against patients on the grounds of:
- age
- disability
- gender reassignment
- marriage and civil partnership
- pregnancy and maternity
- race
- religion or belief
- sex
- sexual orientation
how does age affect oral health
oral health is important at all ages
effects of poor oral health are cumulative over time
risk of oral health conditions change with age
how does being a child affect oral health
- caries
- reduced caries compared to 10 years ago but those who do have decay have lots
dental extractions still most common reason for children to have GA - younger children dependent on parents/caregivers
- older children more independence (food choices, oral hygiene)
how does being a young adult affect oral health
most have good oral health, those with decay more likely to have multiple teeth affected, periodontal health good
how does being an adult 45+ affect oral health
increased caries experience
- <45 less likely to have had any fillings
- 45-54 year old 97% had a filled tooth, with average 9.1 filled teeth
- maintenance of previous restorations
- increased levels of periodontal disease
how does being an older person affect oral health
falling edentulous rates
- 64% aged 75 have some natural teeth
- less coronal caries, but ++ root caries
- periodontal disease
- oral cancer risk increases with age
- increased treatment complexity (previous restorative work, medical conditions, frailty, cognitive decline, dependence)
how does age affect the equality act in dentistry?
can a dentist refuse to treat a particular age group?
can a dentist see children on NHS terms but adults privately?
can oral health improvement target particular age groups?
under what conditions can you target interventions
can target interventions for people with a protected characteristic IF:
- they are currently missing out on services
- can show they have a different level of need
- there is a tract record of disadvantage
- low participation of this group
how are children targetted with dental care
high caries rates
high GA rates
early years = political priority
good oral health part of overall child wellbeing
establishing good oral health early on will influence later life
how are older adults targetted with dental care
- dental attendance declines with age
- older people less likely to have good oral health
- need for help with oral hygiene
- medical consequences of poor oral health
- oral health consequences for general health
why are people with disabilities hard to target
not a single group
- physical/cognitive/sensory/combination
- hidden disabilities
- varying severities
why is it good to target people with disabilities for dental care
poorer oral hygiene
poorer gingival health
caries??
fewer filled teeth, more missing teeth
what things need to be considered when treating disabled people
- access to care
- dental anxiety with learning disability
- communication
- treatment/management complexities
- medical co-morbidities
- capacity to consent
what does equity mean
same rights to oral health doesn’t necessarily mean the same services
what does the disability and the equality act mean you have to do as a service provider
requirement to make “reasonable adjustments”
-disabled people should be able to use services as far as is reasonable to the same standard as non-disabled people
requirement is anticipatory
- plan in advance
- think about different types of disability and possible difficulties
- think about everything needed
what are reasonable adjustments to make for disabilities
physical access - ground floor, ramp, hoist, dom visit, referral
communication - written info (large rint/ images), hearing loop, BSL
enabling treatment - time, explanation, appointment time, treatment plan
find out about patient and what they may need
what is “reasonable”
no formal definition
depends on
- size and nature of business
- physical features of premises
- cost of making adjustments
barriers which should have been identified and reasonable adjustments could have been made
- required to pay compensation + make adjustment if challenged
what do NHS dental practices in scotland have to have
3 yearly practice inspection
records whether can access without stairs
essential to have:
- details of disable access/facilities in practice information leaflet
- practice information leaflet available in large print
- disability policy (ideally based on results of an access survey)
what is an access survey
- look at features that make the practice accessible and what can be improved
- access panels (local groups of disabled people) can provide advice/info/ visit practice
- currently 50 access panels across scotland
- can also consult with disabled patients
