Equality and Inclusion | Equality Reporting | Patient Equality and Inclusion | Staff Equality and Inclusion
Understanding and meeting the diverse needs of our patients and communities is fundamental to the Trust’s mission and objectives.
Within our diverse communities there are groups with particular needs that must be met to allow them to easily access services, to be fully and effectively involved in all aspects of their health and care, and to experience the same high quality care and outcomes as other patients.
Needs could be physical, communication and language, or awareness and understanding.
These may be as a result for example of disability, culture, religion, or sexual orientation, or may be particular needs arising from their role as carers or employees.
Bridgewater is working hard to ensure it meets the individual needs of patients and families by asking and recording information about these needs.
You can help us by telling us about any language, communication, cultural or faith needs you, or your family member, or the person you provide care for has, asking the service you are using to record this in the patient notes.
If you have undergone, are undergoing, or are planning to undergo actions to affirm your gender identity we would welcome the chance to support you in our services.
Please let us know your identified name and pronouns and we use these in all possible communications with you; you may need to request a record change via your GP as we are limited what changes we can effect in your main health record, but we can support you in your contacts with our services.
If you are an armed forces community member please see our dedicated armed forces page.
Communication and language support in services
Good communication is very important for ensuring effective and safe interactions between staff and patients.
For people with disabilities affecting communication, or where English is not a person’s first language, this means providing communication and language interpretation and translation support, or alternative information formats to patients, and, where appropriate, their family members or carers.
The support that can be provided is diverse and includes community languages such as Polish, British Sign Language, Arabic or Urdu; communication support such as speech to text reporters, or Makaton; or alternative information formats such as audio files, easy read, and Braille.
Communication and language support for corporate information
If you need any information from the Trust in another language or format please either contact the service you are using if you query is related to service specific information, or the Patient Services Team for general Trust information:
Telephone Number: 0800 587 0562
TextRelay: 18001 0800 587 0562