Board of Deputies Vice President Andrew Gilbert this week facilitated a Jewish community stakeholder engagement session with NHS England to review its national uniform guidance with particular emphasis on inappropriate political paraphernalia in healthcare settings.
Board of Deputies representatives, alongside a wide range of community partners and Jewish staff networks, took part in the session which made the following recommendations to the NHS:
Uniform guidance is not enough. Policy needs to cover wider dress code, i.e. badges, as well as posters and flags.
Healthcare should be a neutral setting in which any patient, regardless of their background or views, deserves to feel safe and able to access treatment. Hospitals are not a place for international politics.
The only accessories allowed should be NHS lanyards or the badges of professional bodies.
These policies need to be monitored, enforced and be mandatory.
Following the meeting, Andrew Gilbert said: “The Board of Deputies is committed to make the NHS a safe space for Jewish patients and Jewish staff. For us to hear stories of Jews hiding their identities, refusing kosher meals and chaplaincy visits from rabbis is unacceptable and demonstrates a clear failure in our beloved NHS. We are working with the highest levels of government to ensure Jews can access the healthcare they deserve.”