3120 YLH A Guide to the Accessible Information Standard
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Hello.
People with disabilities or sensory loss
experience some of the poorest health outcomes,
partly because their communication
requirements are often not recognised
by healthcare professionals or organisations.
The Accessible Information Standard
describes a specific and consistent approach
to information, provision and
communication for individuals
who have disabilities or sensory loss
as part of the Health and Social Care Act 2012.
All organisations that provide NHS or adult social
care must follow the standard in full.
This video will describe how you and
your organisation can meet the Standard
in order to deliver improved health outcomes and a better experience of healthcare.
The standard will benefit people
who are deaf, blind, autistic
or who have dementia, a learning disability or communication difficulties following a brain injury.
So what can you do to adhere to
the Accessible Information Standard?
Follow these five steps.
Identify - The first step is to identify which patients
and service users have additional requirements.
This can be done by including a question about
disability or sensory loss on registration forms.
Ask what support the individual needs,
such as braille, large print, text phone services,
a British Sign language interpreter, longer appointments
or alternative contact methods
such as text message or email.
Record - The individual’s information and
communication needs must be documented in their notes.
Do not document their disability
as this is insufficient to inform
other service providers of the individual’s requirements.
Document the preferred contact
method and information format,
and whether additional
communication support is needed.
Flag - The individual’s needs
must be flagged or highlighted
so that they are clearly visible to all service providers.
Use alerts on electronic systems or colour
coding in paper based systems.
Share - To improve the healthcare experience,
share this information in referrals
and handovers with other individuals or organisations who are involved in the care of the patient,
but remember to abide by data
sharing and information governance protocols.
Meet - Finally you need to ensure
that the individual’s information
and communication needs are
met by responding to their requirements.
For example:
Utilise loop systems, a British Sign Language
interpreter or email correspondence
for people who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Use large print, braille or audio format in communication with blind and visually impaired individuals.
Provide information in easy read format or Makaton,
and invite an advocate to consultations
to help people with a learning disability or brain injury.
In all cases, allow longer appointment times
and use plain and accessible language
in conversations and correspondence.