Barriers to Professional Courses and Practice

1
Barriers to Professional Courses and Practice

• Dianne Keetch
• Disability Equality and Training

2
Research and Publications

• Teacher Training. Teacher Development Agency.
  http//www.tda.gov.uk/upload/resources/pdf/a/able_
  to_teach.pdf
• Vetinery Medicine. Anne Tynan -Diverse
  http//www.medev.ac.uk/diverse/resources/TimeToTak
  eStock.pdf/
• Medicine.Kathy Boursicot Alan Butler and Trudie
  Roberts http//www.ltsn-01.ac.uk/docs/roberts_fina
  l.pdf
• Medicine.Gateways Project. General Medical
  Council. Guidance March 2008.

3
Research and Publications

• Social Work http//www.swap.ac.uk/widen/accesstopr
  actice.asp
• Nursing http//www.nottingham.ac.uk/teaching/resou
  rces/methods/practicals/dyspelst681/
• http//www.nursing-standard.co.uk/archives/ns/vol2
  1-19/pdfs/v21n19p3542.pdf
• Health Professions Council
• http//www.hpc-uk.org/assets/documents/1000137FAdi
  sabledperson'sguidetobecomingahealthprofessional.p
  df

4
DRC Formal Investigation. Maintaining Standards
Promoting Equality

• Why undertake an FI in the area of Good Health
  and Fitness Standards?
• What is the Purpose of a FI?
• How is an FI conducted?
• Who was involved?

5
Health and Fitness Standards can lead to

• Assumptions about safety
• Assumptions about risk
• Assumptions about disabled people
• Stigmatisation of people with mental health
  issues, dyslexia and epilepsy in particular.

6
Health and fitness Standards can lead to

• Exclusion from training and employment.
• Non disclosure being Driven underground
• Health diagnoses offer no help in predicting
  conduct, risk, competence.
• Pernicious link between health and character.

7
FI Recommendations for Regulatory Bodies

• Regulatory bodies remove Health Standards within
  their own remit.
• Review guidance documents based on statutory
  health standards.
• Conduct impact assessments of all competence
  standards.

8
Recommendations for Qualifying Bodies

• Produce guidance on making reasonable adjustments
  to the assessment of competence
• Review conduct and poor performance in light of
  the DDA
• Review the hearings process in light of the DDA

9
Recommendations for HEIs

• Review disclosure forms in the light of the DDA
• Avoid prejudging the competence and safety of
  disabled people to practice at the application
  stage
• Ensure genuine and relevant competencies are set

10
HEIs

• Make reasonable adjustments to the assessment of
  competence.
• Prepare partners for equity in placements/employme
  nt.
• Only use OH practitioners who implement the DDA
  and enable reasonable adjustments

11
Joint Actions

• Develop genuine involvement of disabled people
  and their organisations via the DED
• Create Mentoring and Networking arrangements
  between disabled people , regulatory bodies and
  HEIs
• Gather data to monitor the impact of standards
  and competency policies and procedures

12
Joint actions

• Conduct further research on attitudes and
  barriers to entry and training in the professions
• Invite Statutory and Regulatory bodies to work
  together to revoke/ review the Health and Fitness
  standards