Supporting the LGBTQ+ population through COVID-19 and beyond
Leaders from across the healthcare system agree that for the LGBTQ+ population to recover and thrive after the pandemic, the way services are designed and delivered, and the workforce environments they are delivered in, must change.
Following a scoping roundtable (recording below), and consultation with the Health and Care LGBTQ+ Leaders Network members, we have developed a series of recommendations to help healthcare leaders, service designers and commissioners ensure their services and workplaces meet the needs of the LGBTQ+ population:
- Create visible leadership and confident staff
- Create a strong knowledge base
- Be non-heteronormative and non-cisnormative in everything you do
- Take responsibility for collecting and reporting data
- Listen to your service users
- Proactively seek out partners to co-deliver services
Read them in more detail by downloading our info-poster.
Next steps
We have also identified 11 pilot sites from across the country to start implementing these recommendations over the next year. These sites are:
- West London NHS Trust
- The Christie NHS Foundation Trust
- Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust
- University Hospitals of Derby and Burton NHS Foundation Trust
- Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust
- Sussex Partnership NHS Foundation Trust
- NHS Surrey Heartlands Clinical Commissioning Group
- Northern Care Alliance
- East London NHS Foundation Trust
- Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust
- North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust
Following the pilot sites progress, we have developed this inclusion framework summary which is based on peer learning. It details the practical steps organisations can take to implement these recommendations.
The full framework will be launched by September 2022.
