NELFT has been awarded the Veteran Aware Accreditation for our continuously dedicated work as an employer and as healthcare provider to the members of the Armed forces and their families.

NELFT is now officially a member of the Veterans Covenant Healthcare Alliance, sharing and driving best practice in NHS care for the Armed Forces Community.

What does this mean?

The Armed Forces Covenant states that serving personnel, reservists, spouses and dependents should not face disadvantage compared to other citizens when accessing health services. The Covenant serves as a promise to those who serve or have served and their families that they will be treated fairly and will be welcomed as patients and/or employees at NELFT.

We are an Armed Forces Friendly Organisation and as such, we support veterans and their families to be treated equally and fairly in their NHS patient journey, and in line with our commitments set out in the Armed Forces Covenant.

To become a Veteran Aware Trust, we have shown that:

• We are committed to ensuring no disadvantage and to giving special consideration where appropriate (if the treatment needed is associated with their time in the armed forces)
• We have educated and trained all relevant staff to identify and respond to the specific needs of the Armed Forces Community.
• We support the UK Armed Forces Community as an employer.
• We signpost to extra services that are provided to the Armed Forces Community by a charity or service organisation (please click here to see our charities’ dedicated webpage)
• We have Armed Forces Champions amongst our staff who are trained with necessary knowledge to support patients form the Armed Forces Community

Nicky Murdoch, Chair of the Armed Forces Public Patient Participation Involvement Group said:

“The introduction of the Veteran Aware standard for hospitals and the veteran Friendly GP practices are really great initiatives. This is brilliant news for all and shows really effective working relationships between the MoD, the NHS and the charity sector. Great for all who serve or have served our nation.”