Following reports in the media on mixed sex wards the NFWI has prepared a short guidance note to provide a starting point for members to campaign should they wish.

Mixed wards

The Government has recently announced that it will not be prioritising single sex wards but rather “single sex accommodation”. The Government rationale is that wards need to be created around specialist staff rather than based on gender and that these mixed wards will be divided into “single sex bays”.

Mixed views

This is a matter of much controversy with divergent views from the idea of single sex bays within specialist mixed sex wards being acceptable and that mixed sex wards should not be the NHS’s top priority at present, through to the view that mixed sex wards are wholly unacceptable and should be phased out as soon as possible.  The NFWI has a mandate calling for an end to mixed sex wards (excluding intensive care and high dependency) which was passed in 1979.

Going forward

Best practice guidelines on the elimination of mixed sex wards were recently issued for each Primary Care Trust (PCT) to implement. The progress of each area is at a different stage and in light of this we would advise members who would like to work on this issue to compare the performance of their local PCT/hospital against the guidelines and write directly to the local PCT and their local MP regarding their findings. View the guidelines.