Equality

The aim of this “Chronic Illness, VNs & the Equality Act at Work” webinar was to provide insights in to the legal requirements of employers under the Equality Act 2010 concerning supporting VNs who suffer from a chronic illness; and to share a case study from a practice director already carrying out best practice.

Chair: Alex Taylor

Presenters: Nicky Ackerley and Lindsay Hughes



Thanks to

for the amazing artwork!

The Equality Act 2010;

Employers have a legal duty to provide support for workers with chronic illnesses.

The Equality Act 2010 states that employers are obliged to ensure that those with disabilities are not treated less favourably due to their disability, or for reasons related to their disability. An employer must provide reasonable adjustments to avoid any substantial disadvantages that a disabled employee may face.

The conditions covered by the Act are physical or mental impairments that have more than a minor or trivial long-term adverse effect on a person’s ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

Supporting employees with chronic ill health can also minimise the potential costs of long-term absence and staff turnover and can encourage productivity, job retention and quality of life. Furthermore, it can retain the experience, knowledge and skills of a worker.

During August and September, we have been sharing information and giving guidance on how to support nurses with chronic illness or conditions. We will be looking at how people can seek help from both an employer and employee point of view. There will be a four-page pull-out supplement in a future VNJ with a toolkit to help colleagues. Please read and share and let’s make a difference.

All webinars will be included in the free Tool Kit on the BVNA website at the end of September.

Find out more about our Caring and Supporting Veterinary Nurses with Chronic Illness Campaign here.

Catch up on our first webinar for our Chronic Illness Campaign here; A VN Listening Group – A webinar to share the tools we use to help us live with chronic illness. During this webinar, we shared our experiences of living with a chronic illness and also shared some personal coping mechanisms we use to help us live and work everyday. Attendees will also learn about how other veterinary nurses cope and the tools they use.

Catch up on our second webinar for our Chronic Illness Campaign here; Resilience for life with a chronic illness or condition. During this webinar, attendees learnt how to deal with changes and will learn to love the new you. Attendees will also learn about how other veterinary nurses cope and the tools they use.

Catch up on our third webinar for our Chronic Illness Campaign here; Chronic illness and communicating what you need. This webinar was based on the principle that we all have a right to express our thoughts, feelings, and needs to others, as long as we do so in a respectful way. It examines why and how we can change and the science behind communication.