NHS Policy Audit - working party -Thread #3

I’m pretty sure there was some interesting wording in more than one policy that I’ve read that suggested that certain uniforms would make certain genitalia (if the owner had chosen not to remove such) more visible, and that certain staff might wish to avoid these types of uniforms.

It is all beyond farcical.

Trousers obviously make it impossible to tell. On the other hand, if they do wear a skirt then they can use the gents, like all the other men, because they have already 'outed' themselves.
What a time to be alive

Ah. So is the presumption that if they didn’t wear a skirt, it would in fact be unclear what their gender status was?

Loving this from MTW NHS trust dress code; where a uniform requires trousers to be worn by all (sic) sexes, trans women may prefer to wear a skirt so that others are clear about their gender status.

Skirts are only for special men, not women.

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust completed. And EHRC Consultation completed 😇

Fab thank you - next one for your delectation is Salisbury Hospitals NHS Trust!

From Devon Partnership NHS Trust Trans policy:

"This policy refers to trans (transgender), transitioning, non-binary and intersex people throughout; for the purpose of this policy these terms are used to describe all people who have a gender identity which differs from that which they were born as and the more fluid identities of genderqueer people."

"Gender - This describes characteristics such as appearance, presentation and behaviour to identify gender (not sex). Characteristics could be masculine, feminine or androgynous."

"Intersex - A term used to cover a variety of different conditions where a person has sexual or reproductive anatomy that is outside of the definitions for male or female."

They think "intersex" people have a gender identity that differs from what they were born as, although they don't seem sure what gender "intersex" people were born as, and since they think "gender" is about how you present and behave, how can a newborn baby have a gender anyway?

My feeling, from having read many of these policies, is that they are all sort of sequential Frankenstein’s monsters - no one person wrote them, at least not in the last 15 years. Something was written once, and then over time bits got appended, or hacked out, or overwritten, until we end up with the nonsensical patchwork we have today.

Which may also play some role in why so many people thought they didn’t have to do a proper EqIA - at each stage they thought they were just slightly “updating” an existing policy.

More from North Bristol, my jaw is again on the floor at these definitions from medical professionals (raises the question of who is writing / signing off these policies):

Hermaphroditism or Intersexuality
A person has an intersex condition when their anatomical sex is ambiguous. The condition may arise due to certain congenital or hormone imbalances in the foetus or placenta. A person who has an intersex condition may or may not experience gender dysphoria. The term intersex is now seen as more appropriate than the term hermaphrodite.

Currently looking at Bristol North Trust - one of their policies claim 84% of trans people "had considered suicide" linking to this 2012 study. The suicide stats are on p59.

transmhstudy.pdf

@FarriersGirl Dorset County done and submitted, bung me another whenever convenient.

The mental health trusts are particularly bad for this - lots of stuff up front about how important single sex accommodation is for women’s mental health in particular, followed swiftly by trans people can self id into whatever accommodation suits them.

Some have very interesting policies on strip searching and intimate observations too.

I checked - it was the official Stonewall/LGBT Foundation scheme, as I could see the email address stem.
Nothing in there I hadn't already seen on this thread. HOWEVER, I was struck by the contradiction between self ID for accommodation, and a recognition that it is extremely important for mental health facilities to be single sex. It didn't specify, but I'm assuming that single sex actually meant single gender.

OK - I've answered my own Q - I think the respondent to FOI request was not entire honest with 'we've not worked with Stonewall since 2021', as Stonewall is part of the Rainbow Badge coalition. Cheeky buggers.

Sorry should add that the rainbow badge scheme was in operation at the start of 2024

I'm going through Cornwall Partnership. It's my first go, and I have a Q.
According to the FOI response to a previous request, the Trust stopped working w Stonewall in 2021. However that FOI also shows that they operated a rainbow badge scheme and were submitting their employment policies for approval. Not to Stonewall but to 'LGBT Foundation'. Are they part of Stonewall? Or an own brand knock off? How do I enter that on the form? Thanks

Well done - the next one is Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Trust!

Just as an aside...

I recently had spinal surgery & have a follow-up outpatient appointment at the end of July. Along with the letter describing the appointment there was a separate form to fill in to capture all my demographics like DOB, ethnicity etc I was very pleased that there was no "Gender" option just "Sex" with a choice of either "Male" or "Female" with no option for "Non-binary" or "Prefer not to say".
Well done East Suffolk & North Essex NHS Foundation Trust!

@FarriersGirl I have submitted Great Western so I’m ready for another one 😀

Thank you @FarriersGirl, will do Cornwall

No no, totally fine, I picked it at random! Let's stick with Farrier's list. Thank you though.

They do this with zero stakes. We do not have the time and nor do we have the distance to do this so dispassionately.

It was this bit that got me. Zero stakes? Only our rights being unlawfully removed from us, even the very words we use to describe our sex class and thereby the axis of our oppression, were taken away. What higher stakes are there? The author seems to think we're just doing this for a laugh, or to be mean, no idea that we're fighting for our existence in law.

And having the time? I bet every woman in this fight has got a job, caring responsibilities, or both. Unlike the terminally online TRAs who have all day to institute online pile ons against uppity women and rabbit rescue charities.

Oh, and we paid for it all ourselves, we didn't get donations handed to us by Comic Relief, Children in Need, or the US fucking government, and we didn't have every public institution and private company rolling over whenever we wanted something. They're so totally and utterly clueless about who is David and who is Goliath.

@teawamutu happy to swap Royal Devon for Dorset County

On it, thank you.