A Diversity Day for 176 new student nurses at Swansea University’s School of Health Science has addressed complex equality issues, including sexuality, gender, disability, religion, and culture and how they can determine approaches to patient care.

Head of the School of Health Science, Professor Melanie Jasper said: “Recognising individual differences and being able to respond to them in planning and delivering healthcare is essential to the knowledge base of skilled practitioners.

“The School of Health Science prepares practitioners to work in a multitude of settings where the successful outcome of care is often dependent on the individual's ability to respond to care and the design of the care package in addressing specific healthcare problems.” 

Speakers who presented at the event included Marilyn Thomas, Secretary of Swansea Bay Asylum Seekers Support Group; Shereen Williams Director of the Council of Ethnic Minority Voluntary Organisations (CEMVO), who tackled the issue of race and Islamaphobia; Laura Evans, a Physiotherapist at Swansea NHS Trust, who discussed disability; Alan Kerfoot, Equality Trainer at Swansea University, who spoke on gender matters, and Lynne Macintyre of the NHS Centre for Equality and Human Rights, who reviewed cultural competences. 

Alison Hann, Jill Olumide, and Chantal Patel, who organised the event, said: “In the multicultural society we live in students need a forum where they are able to discuss sensitive issues relating to diversity in a non-confrontational and confidential setting. The workshops led by our guest speakers enabled this discussion to take place.” 

For further information on the School of Health Science visit www.healthscience.swansea.ac.uk.