NHS Network (Online) Nov 2025

Working with colleagues and service users with speech differences

There are a whole host of speech differences that can affect how your colleagues interact with you and with their role, as well as your service users. For example, at least 1% of your colleagues stammer, yet it’s rare that NHS services consider this when designing standard procedures and ways of working.

STAMMA is the national stammering charity, working across a range of sectors to ensure staff who stammer can thrive and bring their talents to your organisation, and service uses can access the support you offer.

Learn which standard procedures may be tricky for your colleagues and service users who stammer. For example, did you know that 83% of people who stammer find it hard to say their own name on demand. So what does that mean for your frontline staff as they work with service users on an everyday basis, and are constantly checking identity before delivering medications or booking appointments?

In this session, you’ll get practical tips and suggestions for changes you can make that can benefit staff and service users who stammer as well as those with other speech differences. You’ll come away from this session thinking about stammering in a different way!

Mental health, stress and burnout – supporting our colleagues and ourselves

We all know the pressures from working in the NHS, whether that be front line, supporting colleagues, or being the lone ranger of accessibility and inclusion. Whatever the role, it comes with challenges and stress that will impact us all at some point, especially if we have a disability or condition that is being managed too.

This session will be led by Rachel Smitheman, Senior Business Partner at Business Disability Forum. They will share with us why we need to reduce the stigma around mental health in general, and stop seeing it as a weakness, or any different than physical health. We shall also talk about how we support colleagues who may be experiencing poor mental health, along with ourselves – as we need to put on our own life jacket before we support others!

This event will operate using the ‘Chatham House’ rule.

If you require this content in a different format, contact enquiries@businessdisabilityforum.org.uk.