Disabled doctors and disabled medical students
Updated July 2007
Law
The careers of disabled doctors and disabled medical students are particularly affected by legislation covering higher education and employment.
England, Wales and Scotland
The DDA 1995 (as amended) prohibits discrimination on the grounds of disability and makes it unlawful for employers and service providers to treat disabled people less favourably, without justification, for a reason that relates to their disability. It also requires them to make reasonable adjustments or accommodations to ensure that disabled people are not put at a substantial disadvantage.
All organisations with responsibility for disabled doctors and disabled medical students in areas such as their recruitment, teaching, training and employment, have a statutory duty under the DDA 1995 (as amended) to make reasonable adjustments. In supporting disabled doctors and disabled medical students it is important that organisations make reasonable adjustments in all areas for which they are responsible, these can include, but are not limited to: selection, admission and teaching of, and the provision of interviews, open days and taster sessions for medical students; as well as the training and employment of doctors.
Under Part IV of the DDA 1995 amended by the Special Educational Needs and Disability Act (SENDA), education providers – including schools, colleges, universities, and providers of adult education and youth services – are required to ensure that they do not discriminate against disabled people. Since September 2005, further and higher education institutions have been required to make reasonable adjustments to physical features of premises where these put disabled people at a substantial disadvantage.
The DDA 2005 further amends the DDA 1995 to place a general duty on all public bodies to promote equality of opportunity for disabled people. The duty to promote disability equality means that when carrying out their functions, public authorities must give due regard to the need to:
- eliminate unlawful discrimination
- eliminate disability-related harassment
- promote equal opportunities
- promote positive attitudes towards disabled persons
- encourage participation by disabled persons in public life.
While the DDA 1995 extends to the whole of the United Kingdom, separate secondary legislation and Codes of Practice are required for Northern Ireland, as set out in Schedule 8 of the Act. In Northern Ireland, the DDA 1995 is amended by the DDA1995 (Amendment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004, the Disability Discrimination (Northern Ireland) Order 2006, the Special Educational Needs and Disability (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 and the Special Educational Needs and Disability (Northern Ireland) Order 2005 (Amendment) (Further and Higher Education) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006. The DDA 2005 does not extend to Northern Ireland since disability discrimination and transport are ‘transferred matters’ under the Northern Ireland Act 1998.
For BMA members who need advice about discrimination or employment law in the medical profession, the first point of contact should be askBMA. Information about the law is also available on the internet and some key links are given below.
The section contains the following topics: Legal advice
askBMA
Members can get advice on issues arising from their day-to-day work, including employment and partnership problems. BMA staff have detailed knowledge of employment law, industrial relations law and practice, and a clear understanding of local issues. Contact askBMA on 0870 60 60 828
Discrimination law association (DLA)
aims to promote and improve advice and representation in cases of discrimination, harassment or abuse on such grounds as race, gender, religion, disability, sexual orientation, age, health status, political opinion, marital or family status and trade union affiliation or activity and to enhance the understanding of discrimination.
Equality Act 2006
Reintroduced this parliament after it failed to make it through before dissolution, the Equality Bill received Royal Assent 16 February 2006. The Act makes provision for the establishment of the Commission for Equality and Human Rights; to dissolve the Equal Opportunities Commission, the Commission for Racial Equality and the Disability Rights Commission; to make provision about discrimination on grounds of religion or belief; to enable provision to be made about discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation; to impose duties relating to sex discrimination on persons performing public functions; to amend the Disability Discrimination Act 1995; and for connected purposes.
Equality direct
telephone advice service designed to give business managers easy access to authoritative advice on a wide range of equality issues.
Government’s disability website
run by the Disability unit in the department for work and pensions, this website provides information about the rights of those with impairments and has information on the legislation that exists to help establish comprehensive and enforceable civil rights for disabled people in the UK. The site is fully accessible for disabled users.
Guidance – The Disability Discrimination Act
Revised guidance on matters to be taken into account in determining questions relating to the definition of disability was laid before Parliament on 7th February 2006 and issued by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions on 29th March 2006. It came into force on 1st May 2006.
Legal services commission
responsible for the development and administration of two schemes in England and Wales: the Community legal service, and the Criminal defence service.
National Association of Citizens Advice Bureaux (NACAB)
free, confidential, independent and impartial advice on a range of subjects. The site provides access to CAB service evidence and recommendations for reform across a wide range of social policy issues.
National Register of Access Consultants (NRAC)
is an independent register of accredited Access Auditors and Access Consultants who meet professional standards and criteria established by a peer review system. The NRAC is a resource for those seeking professional advice on how to develop inclusive environments in accorance with the Disability Discrimination Acts 1995 and 2005.
The Disability Equality Duty
The Disability Equality Duty for the public sector comes into effect in December 2006. It is a new way for public authorities to tackle disability discrimination in a practical way by introducing organisation-wide approaches and policies that actively promote opportunities and so prevent discrimination taking place.
Publications
Guidelines for good practice in the recruitment and selection of doctors
A BMA publication which takes into account the current legislation and codes of practice for recruiting and selecting doctors.
Statutory bodies
Disability rights commission
an independent body set up by the Government to help secure civil rights for disabled people. Its statutory duties are: to work to eliminate discrimination against disabled people; to promote equal opportunities for disabled people; to encourage good practice in the treatment of disabled people; to advise the Government on the working of disability legislation.
Health and safety commission
The UK Health and safety commission and the Health and safety executive are responsible for the regulation of almost all the risks to health and safety arising from work activity in Britain. They aim to ensure that risks to people’s health and safety from work activities are properly controlled.