The Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) and the Society of Radiographers (SoR) have developed joint guidance on service delivery, patient care, and workforce management for imaging and cancer treatment services following the U.K. Supreme Court’s ruling on the legal definition of sex in the Equality Act on 16 April.
While the Equality Act’s legal protections for transgender, nonbinary, and gender-diverse persons remain unchanged under the ruling, the court clarified that the words “sex,” “woman,” and “man” refer to an individual’s sex assigned at birth in certain situations -- e.g., single-sex facilities or requests for same-sex care.
The ruling creates areas where patient and staff rights may conflict, requiring careful and consistent policies, the RCR and the SoR said.
The recommendations include the following:
- Service protocols and information distributed to patients should be reviewed and updated to ensure they reflect the recent ruling.
- Staff should understand the legal rights of patients and equality protections for colleagues; frontline employees should be briefed on how to constructively respond to patient concerns or requests.
- HR, legal advisors, and equality leads should be consulted in complex situations, or “when rights appear to conflict.”
The organizations also underscore that services must remain safe, respectful, accessible, and inclusive for all patients, including trans and gender-diverse patients; the same principles apply in supporting trans and gender-diverse staff. Additionally, they note the need to ask any questions about sex assigned at birth only when necessary and with sensitivity, as well as to develop a clear process to manage any patient concerns about staff sex or gender identity.
While patients may legally request same-sex services, the guidance stresses that “a response that affirms the professionalism of staff and makes clear that discrimination is not acceptable is required, whilst still showing empathy for the patient.”
The RCR and the SoR stress that all decision-making must be transparent, consistent, and professional, balancing the needs and rights of all individuals.
Read the guidance here.
