The Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust is committed to ensuring that all patients are treated with respect and that their dignity and privacy are maintained at all times.

We believe that providing single sex accommodation is an effective way of helping to achieve this goal.

Single sex accommodation may be provided in two ways:

• Single sex wards (i.e. the whole ward is occupied by either men or women but not both)
• Single sex bays or rooms within mixed wards (i.e. bays or rooms which accommodate either men or women, but not both; with designated single sex toilets and washing facilities within or adjacent to the bay or room).

In exceptional circumstances in which a patient needs urgent or specialist care in areas such as Accident and Emergency, the Intensive Care Unit, the Coronary Care Unit or recovery, mixing men and women may be unavoidable.

We will work to resolve such situations as quickly as possible and will keep patients and their families informed about our actions. During these times, our priority will be to maintain patients’ privacy and dignity.

In line with the national programme we are working to have as many wards as possible wholly single sex.

If you have any concerns about privacy and dignity, please speak to the ward sister/charge nurse in the first instance or the matron for the area. Alternatively, you can contact PALS (the Patient Advice and Liaison Service) or the Patient Relations team on. Tel: (0113) 2066261
Minicom: (0113) 2066018
Fax: (0113) 2066146
E mail: patient.relations@leedsth.nhs.uk