NHS. What to do?

[OwlBee]

I work the NHS and was wondering for advice on what to say about this. I’m worried that things could me taken the wrong way and end badly.

A colleague came in to the office today wearing a new rainbow lanyard. I asked where she got it and she said there was a pride stall (ran by the Trust’s inclusion team). She said to get a lanyard all she needed to do was sign the “pride pledge”. She then said “I think it’s ok to be gay so of course I signed it”.

She asked me if I was going to get one. We got cut off as the phone rang before I responded. I know she will ask me again tomorrow and I’m just not sure what to say. I don’t want to be labelled homophobic or transphobic however there are elements of the pride pledge that concern me.

Any thoughts?

I'm surprised to be the first to comment.

To me anything rainbow is political and NHS staff are supposed to be non political at work. I'd be hugely put off if someone treating me had a rainbow lanyard - why can't they have a hospital one? I also think it's unsafe to have non-hospital lanyards as it reduces the visual impact from a security prospective - if I wear my ID badge on a lanyard that says 'St. Maya's NHS Trust' all along it, that can be seen at a distance and it's a much safer bet that I am actually staff and not some weirdo just walked in off the street with a rainbow lanyard they bought online.

And ... signing a pledge for a cheap bit of kit??? Seriously, they'd have to offer me more than that. What has she promised, do you know?

If you already have a lanyard, why don’t you reply that you don’t need another one.

If I don't feel like getting into the whole thing, I just say that I think neutrality is a really important value in the healthcare setting, and that I support the gay community in different ways in my personal life.
I also think the NHS badge itself should be a representation of safety to gay staff/patients, there shouldn't be a special subset of staff that signal this, it should be safe structurally and systemically.
Everyone and all groups should be safe and treated with respect and dignity, and different coloured lanyards shouldn't have to be worn to signal that. If your colleague believes those with plain lanyards aren't treating gay people well there are big problems in her organisation that signing a pride pledge won't solve.

I found this on line:
www.lnwh.nhs.uk/lgbtqiplus/#our-pledge
'Our pledge
Our teammates who wear a pride badge or lanyard have pledged that:

you can talk to me freely about difficulties you are facing and I will do my very best to find support for you
our organisation is a place of inclusion where we respect and celebrate LGBTQI+ patients and staff
I will challenge discrimination towards LGBTQI+ people in our organisation'

The problem is the forced teaming of LGB and all the rest.

I would do nothing, unless I was the line manager and staff are required to wear official lanyards (for security or other administrative reasons)

Just say you are happy with your suffragette one (that’s what I say!).

actially I say why do I need this? I treat everyone the same…

It’s crap that they so painfully obviously left out the last letter.
Why?

It really is the ‘petification’ of LGBetc people isn’t it.

don’t worry wee fella, I’m here to protect you from the nasty people. Dear god. It’s embarrassing.

I don’t get it… it reads like you opened that conversation so that you could critique your colleague for wearing a rainbow lanyard. And like you’re looking for a way to critique without looking biased.

But what part of the pledge is it you think is so unreasonable that your colleague needs to be warned off it?

”you can talk to me freely about difficulties you are facing and I will do my very best to find support for you

our organisation is a place of inclusion where we respect and celebrate LGBTQI+ patients and staff

I will challenge discrimination towards LGBTQI+ people in our organisation”

You can talk to me, I’ll do my best, show you respect, and challenge discrimination.

What part of that do you so object to for the TQI+ people?

Also not sure what this has to do with feminist chat. Did you mean to post on the other board?

I have always thought lanyards are a massive infection control issue anyway. Like ties. Dangling all over the place, stored in grubby lockers. I bet they dont get washed daily.
A plastic badge securely fastened should be enough. No political symbols in public service organisations.

I think its fine to show support to the lgbt+ community without subscribing to the twaw ideology. Its like with poppies, wear one or don't.

Don't feel peer pressured into wearing one because then you would be wearing one for the wrong reason.

If you genuinely feel that wearing it would help even just one person, then wear one.

Part of me thinks it's often virtue signalling with these rainbow products but I think in the context of the NHS it is genuine.

the first patient to grab her lanyard and try to choke her with it will put her priorities in order pretty fast. No way would I be wearing a lanyard in contact with patients

I say live and let live. Regardless of the lanyard. They still have id badge on which shows they are an employee. Whats the big deal? Everyone has the right to support their own campaign. If she was wearing a cancer research lanyard would there be a negative comment that it wasn't official nhs?

This^^

A plastic badge- I mean a lot of Id badges have access on them and a photo for security purposes so that could be interesting. Not everyone in the NHS works with patients or in clinical areas either to those questioning the safety of a lanyard. OP just don't mention it again, if she questions you just highlight its just a lanyard. Or that you love nhs blue.

I don’t wear a rainbow lanyard at work despite them being available. I’ve been asked before - my response is that I am supportive of all D&I initiatives but I don’t feel it appropriate to signal support for one group over and above another.

My sister stopped wearing them. I remember her being quite excited when they started getting them - but then I explained the cotton ceiling to her, and she opened her eyes.

I like this.