ACEM Equity and Inclusion Award

AP722 V4

 

 

ACEM is committed to fostering and promoting principles of equity and inclusion.  The ACEM Equity and Inclusion Award was established as part of the implementation of College’s Discrimination, Bullying and Sexual Harassment (DBSH) Action Plan. By embracing equity and inclusion, the emergency medicine profession can attract and retain a skilled and talented workforce dedicated to excellence, whilst also fostering inclusive communities – both inside and outside emergency departments.

The award recognises those who are proactively putting in place a well thought through strategy that aims to establish and foster a more inclusive and equitable environment for staff, patients and community.

 

ACEM / the College

means the Australasian College for Emergency Medicine.

College member

means a person admitted as a member of the College pursuant to the provisions of the ACEM Constitution and associated regulations.

Cultural competency

Cultural competence requires an awareness of cultural diversity and the ability to function effectively, and respectfully, when working with and treating people of different cultural backgrounds.

Cultural safety

ACEM supports the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) definition of cultural safety: 

“Cultural safety is determined by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander individuals, families and communities. Culturally safe practice is the ongoing critical reflection of health practitioner knowledge, skills, attitudes, practising behaviours and power differentials in delivering safe, accessible and responsive healthcare free of racism.”

For the purposes of this document, we expand this definition to include Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander and Māori individuals. We also recognise that cultural safety programs, policies and actions eligible to be nominated for this award are those that contribute to making hospitals generally, and EDs more specifically, culturally safer places for these populations.

Diversity

for the purposes of this policy encompasses differences in age, education level, ethnicity, gender expression and identity, language, nationality and national origins, neurodivergence, physical and cognitive ability, political perspectives, race, religious beliefs and affiliations, sex, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status and class, veteran status and other inherited and acquired human differences. While First Nations status in both Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand are important social differences, historically these have not been included in the category of Diversity but stand outside as a special category of social difference.

First Nations Status

for the purposes of this policy refers in Australia to the High Court decision in 1983 which states that a person of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent is a person who identifies as an Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander and is accepted as such by the community in which he or she lives. In Aotearoa New Zealand, where the Māori are the tangata whenua, this policy follows The Māori Land Act that defines Māori as “a person of the Māori race, including any descendants.”

Equity

for the purposes of this policy, equity refers to our commitment to fairness and justice regarding the outcomes of our actions, policies, systems and procedures. This means that we must identify and make up for intentional as well as unintentional barriers arising from systemic structures that privilege only some members of society and social biases, such as racism and sexism, that impede equal chances of participation and success.

Emergency department (ED)

for the purposes of this policy means any department in a hospital in Australia or Aotearoa New Zealand that exists for the provision of emergency medical services, whether accredited for FACEM training or not.

Good standing

for the purposes of this policy means a member who is currently compliant with all relevant ACEM renewal of membership requirements and has no financial debts to the College, or a trainee who has no financial debts to the College and has fulfilled all training and assessment requirements applicable to their stage of training.

Trainee

an individual enrolled in an ACEM training program and, for the purposes of this policy, undertaking College requirements for the purpose of attaining eligibility for election to Fellowship of the College.

 

3.1 Eligibility Criteria – Nominee

To be eligible for nomination for the award, the nominee(s) must be one of the following:

• An individual ACEM member
• A group comprised of ACEM members, not necessarily from the same ED
• An emergency department located in Australia or Aotearoa New Zealand submitted under the signature of the Director of Emergency Medicine (DEM)
• Human Resources departments of health services
• Nurses and/or allied health staff
• Equal Opportunity officers
• Inclusion Committee
• any other role, unit or group within a hospital that has been involved in implementing an equity and/or inclusion initiative.

The ACEM Equity and Inclusion Award shall normally only be bestowed once to any individual, group or ED, except in circumstances where the ACEM Board considers it appropriate to make the award to a group of members or ED, and a previous individual awardee is involved in the initiative(s) that is/are the subject of the award, or the initiative(s) is/are considered by the Board to be such that they be recognised through a second award.

Nominees may be eligible to be nominated for the Equity and Inclusion Award more than once, if the nominations are for different initiatives and/or initiatives within a different group or emergency department.

3.2 Eligibility Criteria – Nominator and seconder

To be eligible to submit a nomination for the award, the nominator and/or seconder must be an ACEM member, who is of good standing with the College.

Provided that the seconder is an ACEM member or trainee enrolled in an ACEM Training Program who is of good standing with the College, nominations may be proposed by the following:

• Senior hospital administrators;
• Medical practitioners who are not a member of ACEM, but who are in a position that enables them to make an informed judgement as to the effectiveness of the equity and inclusion initiatives for which the nomination is being made;
• Senior nursing staff employed in an ED.

Eligible nominees may self-nominate for an individual and/or group/ED award.

The Nominator or the Seconder to provide contact details for a referee who can provide a brief written or verbal report on the practical application of the initiative.

 

4.1 Selection criteria

Nominations for the award will be assessed according to the extent to which the individual’s and/or group/emergency department’s initiative demonstrates evidence of:

• Promotion of equity, inclusion, cultural competency and/or Cultural Safety development among emergency department staff via innovative equity and inclusion initiatives that establish and foster a more inclusive and equitable work environment and/or Development of innovative equity and inclusion initiatives or programs that establish and foster a more culturally safe, inclusive, and equitable environment for patients;
• Promotion of a diverse, equitable and inclusive culture by challenging inequalities, barriers and/or bias in the application of people management policies. For example, inclusive recruitment, performance management, career development and promotion etc, or customer service delivery;
• Long term sustainability – in that there is a focus on systemic change within the health service, and outcomes of the initiative(s) is/are embedded in current and/or future organisational strategies; and
• Impact and outcomes – the extent to which the initiative(s) has addressed challenges, achieved the desired outcomes and/or positively impacted on the individual(s) and/or group(s) targeted by the initiative(s). Describe how the initiative was evaluated and how the impact is measured.

In addition, for nominations specific to community activities, outside of the ED:

• Providing support to community-based diversity and equity programs designed to improve people’s cultural awareness and sensitivity and/or promote greater inclusion for communities that have been largely excluded.
• Encouraging employee volunteerism in the community with regard to cultural connections.

The efforts and achievements must have been demonstrated through:

• specific work with other individuals or groups, or
• a specific product, initiative, innovative program or activity,

that has a visible, tangible or measurable impact on the perception of, attitude toward and respect for a truly equitable and inclusive environment for all, in which the variety of cultures, experiences, expertise and viewpoints are valued and incorporated into the delivery of emergency medical care, and where individuals are valued for their talent and able to reach their full potential.

4.2 Adjudication

A panel of three (3) or more assessors convened by the ACEM Inclusion Committee shall adjudicate the submissions and recommend to the ACEM Board the recipient(s) based on the applicable criteria, for consideration.

The panel may select more than one submission for the Honour.

The ACEM Board shall consider all recommendation(s) and determine the recipient(s) of the Honour. At its discretion, the ACEM Board may choose not to award the Honour(s) if it sees fit. The decision of the ACEM Board will be final and is not subject to the processes and avenues outlined in the College’s Reconsideration, Review and Appeals Policy (COR355).

All parts of the selection process must be conducted in accordance with the College Conflict of Interest Policy (COR139). 

 

5.1 Nature of Award

The ACEM Equity and Inclusion Award consists of a framed certificate attesting to the award.

 

• ACEM Honours Policy (COR805)
• Equity and Inclusion Award Nomination Form – Individual (AP727)
• Equity and Inclusion Award Nomination Form – Group (AP728)
• Equity and Inclusion Award Score Sheet (AP765)
• Equity and Inclusion Award Tally Score Sheet (AP770)
• Conflict of Interest Policy (COR139)