Awarding LGBTI inclusive practice in aged care
The annual Tasmanian Dorothies Award, this year recognising inclusive ageing and aged care community service providers, has been awarded to Uniting AgeWell at a ceremony in Launceston earlier this month.
Uniting AgeWell’s Strathdevon Manager Integrated Services Vicki Pollock (right) receiving the award from Susan Ditter, the Executive Officer of award organisers Working It Out.
Uniting AgeWell received the award in recognition of its work in providing LGBTI-inclusive aged care services.
Vicki Pollock, Manager Integrated Services at UA Strathdevon received the ‘2016 Award acknowledging Inclusive Practice for LGBTI elders in a Faith Based Care Service’ from Susan Ditter, Executive Officer of award organisers Working It Out (WIO), Tasmania’s gender, sexuality and intersex status support and education service.
Uniting AgeWell Director of Mission John Clarke says the award is a wonderful and worthy recognition of the work Uniting AgeWell is doing to incorporate LGBTI inclusive practice into its residential and community services.
This includes establishing a senior executive LGBTI Working Group, developing an LGBTI policy and practice standard and offering LGBTI training to staff.
Standard administration forms and procedures are being updated to ensure they are LGBTI inclusive and when staff was surveyed about their attitudes to LGBTI inclusiveness, more than two thirds agreed it was important UA was an LGBTI inclusive service.
Mr Clarke says Uniting AgeWell is working towards the Rainbow Tick accreditation, which recognises an organisation’s commitment to safe and inclusive service delivery for LGBTI people in our community.
“This signifies that we have worked to make our services welcoming of the LGBTI community and able to meet their needs.”
