Thursday 1st February, 2018 is Dignity Action Day; a day that aims to ensure people who use care services are treated as individuals and are given choice, control and a sense of purpose in their daily lives.

Dignity is a human right; we all have a responsibility to model respect, dignity and courtesy and show that all people, regardless of age, are respected, valued and celebrated in our communities.

The Social Care Institute for Excellence reports that there are eight main factors that promote dignity in care; each of these contributes to an individual’s sense of self-respect and are essential in any care environment.

They are:

1. giving people choice and allowing them to be in control
2. communicating in a respectful way, taking time to listen and sharing information appropriately
3. providing nutritious, appetising meals that meet the needs and choices of individuals
4. ensuring that people living with pain have the right help and medication to reduce suffering and improve their quality of life
5. enabling people to maintain their usual standards of personal hygiene
6. promoting and enabling independence wherever possible
7. respecting people’s personal space and confidentiality
8. supporting people to participate in social activities and keep in contact with family and friends.

Dignity Action Day is a campaign led by The National Dignity Council, where over 96,000 champions have pledged to promote dignity. This February, Dignity Action Day aims to reach the hearts and minds of the nation, with its theme: ‘Have You Got Time for Digni-tea?’ While every day should be dignity action day, this is the day that gives everyone the opportunity to come together to promote the campaign.

Dame Joan Bakewell, Dignity in Care Ambassador said:

“Dignity Action Day highlights a more respectful way of behaving towards vulnerable people. The very old and the very young clearly need our respect, but it wouldn’t do any harm to spread the dignity message across the population; then we can all benefit.”

Supporting Dignity Action Day will:

• Raise awareness of the importance of dignity in health and care
• Provide someone with an extra special day
• Demonstrate that everybody in the community has a role to play in upholding dignity in care
• Remind the public that staff have a right to be treated with dignity and respect too
• Provide a great community networking opportunity.

To find out more about how you can support Dignity Action Day, visit: https://www.dignityincare.org.uk/Dignity-in-Care-events/Dignity_Action_Day/What_is_Dignity_Action_Day/