Extracts from this document...

Introduction

Equality and rights Right to be respected treated with equality, fairly, respected as an individual and not discriminated against: Being treated fairly and equally means having access to all services they may need regardless of their age, gender, race etc. The right to be respected and treated with equality means that they shouldn?t be discriminated against no matter what their personal circumstances are, and legally people cannot be discriminated against, according to the Equality Act 2010. For example in a Doctor?s surgery they should accept patients of any age, ethnic background, culture, gender etc. as everyone has the right to be treated equally and to not be discriminated against, so they should all be able to access the services they need and/or want. Right to privacy and dignity: The right to privacy and dignity means that individuals have a right to preserve their privacy and dignity with particular reference to hygiene, feeding etc. ...read more.

Middle

Those most at risk from danger and harm are children, individuals with mental health problems, individuals with learning disabilities or physical disabilities, the elderly etc., as these kinds of people can be less powerful and easily influenced. Care workers can protect individuals from danger and harm by raising awareness of possible abuse or problems, monitoring who they have contact with, physically or written (e.g. who phones them, who they write to, who cares for them etc.), by training staff so they know what procedures to follow when they feel someone?s safety might be at risk etc. Right to access information relevant to themselves: Service users have the right to know what is being recorded and said about them and should be able to request any information that has been recorded about them at any time. For example in a school, a parent should be able to request to view, and be allowed to view, the records that the school have kept about their child, or children, regarding their health, their progress at the school, and incidents that have occurred etc. ...read more.

Conclusion

A patient may choose to speak to someone in their first language, in which case they are entitled to a translator so that they can effectively communicate with the other person, for example a patient talking to a doctor. Another example would be someone who uses a different method other than speaking, for example Makaton, or British Sign Language. Their right to do this is so important to ensure they can effectively communicate and receive the care and services that they need. Right to be cared for in a manner that takes account of their needs, choices, preferences: Care workers should aim to treat each person they care for as an individual, and provide care to that person that meets their individual needs, by assessing each person to find out their particular needs, taking into account their beliefs and preferences. For example an elderly resident in a care home may need help with bathing and personal cleaning, but may be perfectly capable of eating independently, therefore care workers in that setting should accept that and provide help where necessary but allow independence where the service user wants it. ...read more.

This student written piece of work is one of many that can be found in our AS and A Level Healthcare section.