Delivering Same Sex Accommodation

Trust Declaration of Compliance

30th March 2012

South London Healthcare NHS Trust is pleased to confirm that we are compliant with the Government’s requirement to eliminate mixed- sex accommodation, except when it is in the patient’s best interest, or reflects their personal choice.

We have the necessary facilities, resources and culture to ensure that patients who are admitted to our hospitals will only share the room where they sleep with members of the same sex, and same-sex toilets and bathrooms will be close to their bed area.

Sharing with members of the opposite sex will only happen when clinically necessary (for example where patients need specialist equipment such as in critical care, coronary care and recovery units immediately following surgery) or when patients actively choose to share for instance in children’s wards.

We have experienced some challenges in our Day Surgery Unit on the Queen Elizabeth site of the Trust over the past year however we have made considerable progress and have robust contingency plans in place to ensure that we maintain compliance. The key actions agreed are as follows:

• "Ring fencing" of beds on the unit from emergency activity on the site.
• The closure of the unit each Friday evening.
• A continued review of the management of the patient pathway in the unit.

If our care should fall short of the required standard, we will report it. We will also set up an audit mechanism to make sure that we do not misclassify any of our reports. We will publish the results of that audit on the Trust internet site.