Equality & Diversity in Health and Care – Level 1 – Online CPD Course

Who is the equality, diversity and human rights course for?

This equality, diversity and human rights e-learning course should be completed by those who work in health and social care services including:

• NHS medical, nursing, AHP and care staff
• Locum doctors and nurses
• Locum allied health professionals (AHPs)
• Agency nurses
• Agency workers
• Healthcare assistants
• Support workers
• Care assistants
• Nursery staff
• Teachers and teaching staff
• Community services

Our online equality, diversity and human rights courses should be completed by all healthcare and social care staff. This includes voluntary staff and unpaid work in NHS and private hospitals. Locum doctors, locum allied health professionals, agency nurses and healthcare assistants can also complete these e-learning courses.

These equality, diversity, inclusion and human rights courses are also relevant for health and social care support workers, including those who work for nursing care homes, residential care homes and charities.

What is equality?

Social equality is a state of affairs in which all people within a specific society or isolated group have the same status in certain respects, including civil rights, freedom of speech, property rights and equal access to certain social goods and services. However, it also includes concepts of health equality, economic equality and other social securities. It also includes equal opportunities and obligations, and so involves the whole of society.

Social equality requires the absence of legally enforced social class or caste boundaries and the absence of discrimination motivated by an inalienable part of a person’s identity. For example, sex, gender, race, age, sexual orientation, origin, caste or class, income or property, language, religion, convictions, opinions, health or disability must not result in unequal treatment under the law and should not reduce opportunities unjustifiably.

“Equal opportunities” is interpreted as being judged by ability, which is compatible with a free-market economy. Relevant problems are horizontal inequality − the inequality of two persons of the same origin and ability and differing opportunities given to individuals − such as in education or by inherited capital.

What is diversity?

Diversity is any dimension that can be used to differentiate groups and people from one another. In a nutshell, it’s about empowering people by respecting and appreciating what makes them different, in terms of age, gender, ethnicity, religion, disability, sexual orientation, education, and national origin.

Diversity allows for the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It means understanding one another by surpassing simple tolerance to ensure people truly value their differences. This allows us both to embrace and also to celebrate the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual and place a positive value on diversity in the community and in the workforce.

What is inclusion?

Inclusion is an organisational effort and practice in which different groups or individuals having different backgrounds are culturally and socially accepted and welcomed, and equally treated. These differences could be self-evident, such as national origin, age, race and ethnicity, religion/belief, gender, marital status and socioeconomic status or they could be more inherent, such as educational background, training, sector experience, organisational tenure, even personality, such as introverts and extroverts.

Inclusion is a sense of belonging. Inclusive cultures make people feel respected and valued for who they are as an individual or groups. People feel a level of supportive energy and commitment from others so that they can do their best at work. Inclusion often means a shift in an organisation’s mindset and culture that has visible effects, such as participation in meetings, how offices are physically organised or access to particular facilities or information.

What are human rights?

Human rights are moral principles or norms that describe certain standards of human behaviour and are regularly protected as legal rights in municipal and international law. They are commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights “to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being”, and which are “inherent in all human beings” regardless of their nation, location, language, religion, ethnic origin or any other status.

They are applicable everywhere and at every time in the sense of being universal, and they are egalitarian in the sense of being the same for everyone. Human rights are regarded as requiring empathy and the rule of law and imposing an obligation on persons to respect the human rights of others, and it is generally considered that they should not be taken away except as a result of due process based on specific circumstances; for example, human rights may include freedom from unlawful imprisonment, torture and execution.

What are the Skills for Health’s UK “Core Skills Training Framework” (CSTF)?

There is increasing recognition that there are wide variations in the quality and consistency of healthcare training provided across the UK. To minimise these challenges, Octrac Consulting works with various UK health and social care organisations to develop statutory and mandatory training courses in line with Skills for Health’s UK Core Skills Training Framework (CSTF). This includes mandatory training courses and other awareness courses for health and social care workers.

This online fire safety course was developed in line with the CSTF learning outcomes.

Why choose our accredited e-learning courses?

The benefits of using our accredited e-learning courses in the workplace include:

• National Skills Academy for Health national delivery partner
• The UK accredited e-learning provider
• An approved UK training centre
• Ofqual accredited qualifications
• Nationally recognised CPD certificates
• Free blended learning environment to support existing training
• Access your online training immediately
• A Highly interactive e-learning portal
• Substantial cost reductions (no travel fees & other expenses)
• Embrace the benefits of eLearning for healthcare providers
• Significant man hour reductions
• Online training only takes as long as the learner’s needs
• Low carbon footprint through e-learning
• Over 1000 online CPD courses
• Repository of online learning materials and assessment
• Fully qualified and experienced trainers, instructors and assessors
• Subject matter experts and content developers
• Convert your existing classroom courses to e-learning courses
• All training courses are based on the latest guidance and best practice