Here at Guardian Angel Carers, in West Sussex we aspire to provide you and your loved ones with the best care possible. We believe in individualised care and promote equality and diversity for all care service we provide. We provide our carers will all the support and training they need to be professional as well as compassionate and considerate, and we believe that treating the person rather than the condition is the philosophy at the heart of excellent care.

This philosophy should be at the heart of any care agency who have a mission to promote equality and diversity in care. With this commitment in mind, care agencies develop their own policies around equality and diversity, and they ensure that their carers all know and understand the policy. As well, equality and diversity training are part of an employee’s professional experiences, and these trainings all reflect any changes that might take place in terms of legislation or other important policy-making groups.

When speaking with a representative of a care agency about equality and diversity, here are some topics that might be useful to you to guide the conversation.

Aiming to treat the individual, not the condition

When carers who understand the notions of equality and diversity see a person in need of care, the carers understand that the individual must be treated at all times with dignity and respect, no matter that individual’s condition, illness, or prognosis. By placing the person at the heart of a caring philosophy, carers are more aware of the humanity of the individual, which ensures that careless and casual interactions do not take place by accident when the ailment is the focus.

Promoting individual needs with tailored care plans

Carers who promote equality and diversity see each person as possessing individual needs and they know how to respond to those needs accordingly. For example, carers can adjust their attitudes, their manners of speaking, as well as their approach to physical interactions according to the individual needs of a person in their care. This personal approach to care also involves thoughtful and considerate development of plans for care, whether those plans involve hourly care or round-the-clock care. As well, if a carer is providing support to a couple, that carer will understand the relationship between the couple and work with the couple’s preferences.

Putting the promotion of equality and diversity at the forefront of care

Carers who commit to their company’s equality and diversity policy will have excellent communications skills as well as a certain level of cultural competence. The ability to communicate clearly, thoughtfully, and tactfully with anyone who might be in their care is of utmost importance. If sensitive questions or concerns need mentioning, a carer should feel able to address these concerns, with the client as well as with the employer.

As well, carers should understand how a person’s religion and culture can impact the ways in which a person may prefer to receive care. If a person receiving care is from a different culture than the one of the carer, the equality-minded carer will feel comfortable and capable of providing support, not matter the differences between the carer and the client. Thanks to ongoing professional development trainings, carers will also be able to

recognise when discrimination is taking place in different contexts, and they will know the procedures around reporting such inequalities in experience.

Guardian Angel Carers are proud of our commitment to equality and diversity in care. With regular ongoing trainings and close examinations of the policies we put into place, we protect the dignity of everyone with whom we work. Contact us to talk more about what we can do to tailor a care plan for you and your loved one