Equal Opportunity, Data Protection Act 1998 - Coursework Example

work College Question The health professional council is a regulator of more than 200000 professionals in the health sector based in the UK. Set in 2003 to replace CPSM, the HPC has many roles which include; It sets and maintains standards proficiency for health professionals. Approves training and education programmers for health professionals which they must finish before they can be register. It maintains and publishes registers of health care providers in the UK who have met the desired professional requirements. To be registered as a medical scientist one has to have the following qualifications An accredited honors degree from an institution of biomedical sciences One year training in an approved laboratory and this must be shown in writing so that it is approved A portfolio with a certificate of competence, this is necessary in order to prove that you are competent IBMS competence certificate, and this must be followed with registration with HPC Question 2 Equal opportunity is an important yet controversial decision making standard which is informal. Without any definition it simply means fair choices within the public sector. There are various legislations and policies which are put to ensure that the standards of equal opportunities are met. Some of these legislations include Employment equality regulations act 2006, which prohibits discrimination, victimization, and harassment on the grounds of age and gender in the areas of employment and areas which provide vocational training. Disability discrimination act of 1995 prohibits discrimination of any person on the grounds of disability in the sector of employment and vocational training centers. This legislation ensures that there is no discrimination against any person on the grounds of disability. Every institution has a policy that prohibits a person in power or organization from discriminating against another person due to their age, gender, and their abilities. However this does not mean that they should not seek for quality when looking for any person to fill a particular position. Question 3 Data protection act 1998 is an act in the United Kingdom which defines data processing laws on people. This is the main law that protects data in the UK. The act was created to protect people from any violation of their funder metal rights and freedoms. The particular right that is mentioned here is the right to privacy with respect to processing data which is personal. This act in practice, gives a way for individuals to have control over their personal information. The act however does not apply to domestic use an example being personal diary. Any person who holds any personal data with any other purpose is obliged to comply with the act. The act also wants every individual and company to have their personal information kept for themselves. Question 4 A professional code of conduct standardizes and defines different expectations that people in occupations, professional companies and organization have. The conduct also makes guides to the behavior of employees in relation to clients, fellow employees, and the competitors. The main purpose of the code is to; Define professionalism. This is where the code defines what is expected of every person who is working and in a particular position. Establishing core values. Every profession has its core values; the code of conduct has the sole purpose of giving these core values to the general public. Guiding representation of individuals. The conduct guides every individual employee towards making good decisions and how they represent themselves in the society. Guiding relationships that are outside the organization. Guides the professionals in their relationships with the media, clients and their co-workers. Guides professional relationships. The relationship between professionals and other professionals in the same field of work. Protect assets. The collective asset of a profession, for example public trust which is a very important asset in any profession is protected by the code of conduct. Question 5 The ETD is directive from the Europe counsel to protect the health and safety of workers. The purpose of the maximum working hours is to ensure that no worker works past the number of hours that he/she is considered to be safe for him. Doctors have been covered by this deal to improve the conditions under which they work. The maximum number of hours that every health professional is expected to work per week is 56 hours. The directive has had an effect on the total number of hours that is t be used in a pathology laboratory. Each pathologist is expected to work for a maximum of 56 hours per week, and the working hours are defined as the hours that one spends working. The law restricts the number of hours that a pathology lab can be used to the maximum number of pathologists that are in a given lab. For example if a lab has two pathologist, then the maximum number of hours that the lab can work is the total time that the two pathologist spend together in the lab and then you have to add the separate time. This gives you the total time that is to be used in the lab. Question 6 The principal laws and regulations relating to health, security and safety are; The management and work safety regulations of 1999. This regulation requires every employer to carry out any risk assessments. Workplace regulation act 1992. Carries different issues that have to be fulfilled by the organization towards making t heir place of work to have the best working conditions. Health and safety regulations 1992 set out to work with visual display act. Personal protection and equipment protection act 1992. Ensures that the personal rights and work regulations are met. Provision and use of equipments act 1992. This act ensures that thee equipment that is used at any place of work is safe for use Manual handling regulation act 1992. Cover any object that is moving by hand or bodily force Health and safety regulations of 1981. This covers all the requirements for first aid. Safety and health information for employee’s regulation 1992. This requires every employer to have a poster that explains to every employee everything that they have to know concerning their health Employer liability act 1969. This requires every employer to take any insurance against accidents and ill health at the place of work. Reporting of any injuries, dangerous occurrence and diseases regulation1995. This requires every employer to report and incidents of accidents that is in their workplace. Question 7 People who work in the laboratory are exposed to many kinds of risks. The risk come from t he exposure to different biological agents and material that they use as they work in the lab. Some of the risk that laboratory personnel work with includes Exposure to biological agents. There are different biological agents that the laboratory worker has to be exposed to everyday. Some people even have to work with material that contains micro-organisms. There are several control measures that can be used to avoid getting exposed to these biological agents. They need to notify HS of the presence of the organisms which they are working on so that they can protect the area that they are working on. The medical personnel also need to wear protective clothing’s to prevent them from getting exposed to the organisms. Exposure to chemicals that are used in the laboratory is also one of the risks of working in the laboratory. To avoid this, the people working in the laboratory should wear protective clothing and be more careful while using the chemicals. It is also advisable that chemicals which are poisonous when inhaled be handled with much care to protect the person from inhaling the gas. Accidents that lead to injuries. Getting an accident is very easy in the laboratory due to the many sharp tools that are used and the small space that is available for the many things. To avoid such accidents, it is advisable that the laboratory workers should be more careful when working in the laboratory. Exposure to radiation. Some of the radiation that laboratory personnel get exposed to is very dangerous. To prevent this, workers in the medical laboratory need to minimize their use of radiation equipment and also wear radiation detectors whenever they are working in the lab. Bibliography GAWANDE, A. (2002). Complications: a surgeons notes on an imperfect science. New York, Metropolitan Books. THOMAS, L. (1983). The youngest science: notes of a medicine-watcher. New York, Viking Press. HOLLAND, S., LEBACQZ, K., & ZOLOTH, L. (2001). The human embryonic stem cell debate: science, ethics, and public policy. Cambridge, Mass, MIT Press. THACHER, J. (1967). American medical biography; or, Memoirs of eminent physicians who have flourished in America, to which is prefixed a succinct history of medical science in the United States from the first settlement of the country. New York, Milford House. KANDEL, E. R. (2006). In search of memory: the emergence of a new science of mind. New York, W.W. Norton & Co FORD, M. (2010). Medical microbiology. Oxford, Oxford University Press. EUROPEAN FEDERATION FOR MEDICAL INFORMATICS. (1997). International journal of medical informatics. [Ireland], Elsevier. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/13865056. Read More