Disabled and neurodivergent doctors are unable to access workplace adjustments because of understaffing and unfeasibly high workloads across the NHS, the BMA has warned.
A report published today by the association is calling on the Government and the health service to improve recognition of how wider service pressures affect staff’s ability to access reasonable adjustments.
Based upon a study of 801 disabled and neurodivergent doctors and students from across the UK, the report exposes the extent to which many staff struggle to have their health needs recognised or are outright ignored.
Among the report’s findings were that, while 67 per cent of respondents said they had notified their employer or medical school about their disability or neurodivergent status, just 33 per cent said that this had led to improved support.
‘Obtaining reasonable adjustments is such a struggle that it almost cancels out their benefit,’ one doctor told the survey.
‘Even though I have reasonable adjustments on paper, they don’t translate well to real life due to poor hospital infrastructure, underfunding of the NHS and low staffing levels.’
Findings from the report include:
– 47 per cent of respondents were not satisfied with the process for accessing reasonable adjustments at their place of work/study
– 53 per cent were not satisfied with the information available on how to access reasonable adjustments at their place of work/study
– 54 per cent were not satisfied with the time it took to get their reasonable adjustments put in place.