Being Human: A human rights based approach to health and social care

Date: 24th January 2017
Category: Disability, Basic Health and Welfare

The Alliance has published a revised and updated Being Human Think Piece, which seeks to contribute to the continuing conversation on human rights in Scotland, and particularly how they apply to health and social care and people who are disabled and living with long term conditions.

We all have rights to the highest attainable standard of health, an adequate standard of living, and to the factors that enable these. But many people who are disabled or living with long term conditions still describe being viewed and treated as of lesser value - if not worse - than their peers.

As public services in Scotland struggle to reform to meet increasing demand with smaller financial resource, human rights offer a fair and consistent basis to guide policy development, service redesign and resource allocation. This requires human rights principles to be embedded clearly within law and policy and within operational processes and decision-making, including local strategic commissioning.

To support this, the Alliance have published their Think Piece. It highlights:

• The why and how of human rights;
• Key national policy areas and their relationship with human rights;
• A series of case studies on human rights based approaches.

Hard copies of the document are available directly from the ALLIANCE. Contact Chris Doyle by email at Christopher.Doyle@alliance-scotland.org.uk or by telephone on 0141 404 0231.

• Download 'Being Human: A human rights based approach to health and social care' here.