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Sexual orientation in the workplace

June 2005

The way forward
Sexual orientation is a key component of the BMA’s equality and diversity strategy. The strategy tackles many of the concerns and issues outlined in this resource, along with other strands of equality and diversity. The suggestions below are extracted from the BMA report Career barriers in medicine: doctors’ experiences (2004). [Go to reference 1]. These form part of the strategy of action that the BMA is
pursuing in collaboration with other key stakeholders. Recommendations from GLADD are included in this section as further guidance for implementing change.

BMA recommendations for lesbian, gay and bisexual doctors – overcoming medical career barriers
Legislation needs to be understood and implemented in relation to sexual orientation
- NHS employers should ensure that they are fully aware of the legislative requirements and should implement existing guidance.

Data would assist in identifying where problems exist and should be collected in a sensitive manner
- More data needs to be collected on lesbian, gay and bisexual doctors.
- Appropriate monitoring practices should be introduced to collect data on the sexual orientation and experiences of doctors.

Support should be more widely available and confidentiality should be ensured
- NHS employers and deaneries should identify a key individual who can act as a first line of support and provide confidential advice to doctors on sexual orientation. They should provide the contact details for these individuals on their websites.

Medical schools should regularly review curricula
- Medical schools should review the way in which sexual orientation is presented within the medical curriculum.

- Medical schools should consider issues of sexual orientation within their admissions policies and within their anti-bullying and harassment procedures.

GLADD recommendations
Many of the resources referred to throughout this publication have been developed by GLADD. In addition to its informative resources, GLADD also makes recommendations on improving working
lives for lesbian, gay and bisexual doctors. Some of them include:

NHS employers should:
- ensure that equal opportunities policies cover discrimination on the grounds of sexuality and gender as well as discrimination on the grounds of sex

- incorporate their equal opportunities policy into the Contract of Employment of all employees

- include a copy of the relevant parts of GLADD guidelines in their Employees’ Handbook and where applicable, in their procedures for Clinical Governance. [Go to reference 41].

Medical schools should:
- include sexual orientation in their admissions policies, equal opportunities policies and harassment policies, in the same way that sex and race are presently included

- inform all students about these policies on arrival, and about sources of support, including local gay and lesbian student organisations

- circulate Duties of a doctor and/or a Declaration to medical and dental students to all students on arrival

- make education regarding the whole range of human sexual response a part of every medical curriculum. Issues related to lesbian and gay patients could be included in a communications or sexuality module or during general practice attachments. They form a part of the many sensitive areas qualified practitioners will face throughout their careers. Issues of sexuality, privacy, confidentiality, prejudice, guilt and lifestyle are not exclusive to lesbian and gay individuals, nor appropriate to be covered only in psychiatry or genitourinary medicine. It should not be assumed that students will naturally be comfortable with dealing with gay and lesbian patients (or colleagues) and some special training will be required to overcome embarrassment or prejudice. [Go to reference 40]

BMA general suggestions and approaches for overcoming medical career barriers
There must be zero tolerance of discrimination
- The BMA will continue to work with the health departments to develop a comprehensive ‘zero tolerance’ strategy for the NHS that includes all forms of discrimination experienced by doctors.

- The BMA will lobby the government to provide more funding to enable all NHS organisations and employers to sign up to initiatives that support diversity and equality, such as the Positively Diverse programme in England. Sexual orientation should be represented in the work and training programmes of Positively Diverse.

Education and training in equality and diversity is a key tool for challenging attitudes and changing behaviour
- Guidelines for education and training in diversity and equality matters, including sexual orientation, should be developed by the BMA in conjunction with the Council of Heads of Medical Schools, the GMC, royal colleges, regional postgraduate deans, advisers in general practice and undergraduate deans.

- NHS employers should run training sessions on diversity and equality as part of their induction programmes for newly appointed doctors.

Doctors need good quality career guidance and support
- Stakeholders from universities, deaneries and royal colleges, as well as clinical tutors, should continue to work together with the BMJ/BMA in the national initiative Supporting Doctors’
Career Choices.

- Through BMA publications and the work of the equal opportunities committee, the BMA will continue to provide expert guidance and support to members in dealing with issues of discrimination. BMA members experiencing discrimination should immediately contact askBMA on 0870 60 60 828.

Doctors from under-represented groups should be supported to enter leadership and management roles
- The BMA supports the work of the NHS Leadership Centre in England to promote leadership development across the NHS. This should be extended to include the advancement of qualified gay, lesbian, and bisexual doctors into leadership roles.

Best practice in equality and diversity should be shared
- The BMA should report examples of best practice in the area of equality and diversity in relation to the medical profession.

More work needs to be done to examine and highlight the underlying issues that present barriers to career progression
- More research needs to be undertaken into the experiences of doctors and career barriers that exist within the medical profession.

- BMA News, BMJ and studentBMJ should publish case histories on a regular basis.