Competence 5: using information and knowledge inclusively, legally and ethically

“Are you using the information and knowledge inclusively, legally and ethically?”

Now that you have found and appraised the information you need, you'll be able to use it to improve your daily practice. However, you need to be aware that there are some best practice issues when using information, as discussed below:

'Inclusively'

Does the information that you are using take into account the ethnicity differences in the UK? Have you considered how it may best be applied to patients from under-represented ethnic groups, or from groups that may have different cultural practices? Have you used culturally-sensitive language when writing your work? The RCN Diversity and Equality web pages provide a useful background to diversity issues.

Likewise, have you considered those with disabilities or those with specific learning differences? The RCN has produced a useful toolkit for nursing staff about dyslexia, dyspraxia and dyscalculia including practical advice about difficulties in reading documentation and writing notes. The Easyhealth website is aimed at those with learning disabilities, which provides health information that is easy to understand.

Another important issue to consider is social inclusion, because it is well known that people who are socially excluded have poor physical and mental health compared to the general population (Department of Health, 2007). The RCN offers an online resource on the topic of social inclusion. You may also wish to work in an inclusive way within your work team. So if presenting information to colleagues, have you ensured that you have involved all staff, and promoted the idea of working together as part of a team to achieve the best results?

Equality issues you need to consider are:

• Gender: different priorities and different needs – e.g issues of child care/carer responsibilities.
• Lesbian/gay/transgender: discrimination and prejudice.
• Disability: consider all possible impairments – mobility, sensory, mental health, learning difficulty, dyslexia, long-term conditions.
• Race: consider all ethnic groups – Middle Eastern, North African, European, Gypsies and Travellers, asylum seekers and refugees.
• Age: different age groups have different needs and different ways of participating – older people may need specific learning to develop skills (e.g IT).
• Faith/religion: different values, knowledge(s). Also to include those who do not follow any religion or belief system.

Finally, remember that it is always good practice to use accessible language when writing. The Plain English Campaign's guide, How to write medical information in plain English, may be useful to you.

'Legally'

Have you considered legal issues? There are copyright issues, for example, in using and distributing information that you have not written, because that belongs to the author or organisation that commissioned the information. So if you were to photocopy a number of printed articles and distribute them to your colleagues, for example, you would be in breach of the owner’s copyright (unless your organisation had a licence to do this) and this is illegal.

Likewise, there are confidentiality issues around patient information, so it's important to take great care when communicating information about a patient, either verbally or in writing. The Learning Zone's area on information disclosure is invaluable to guide you through the confidentiality minefield. It's free to all RCN members.

The RCN has produced legal advice for RCN members using the Internet, including social networking sites. Social networking is covered more fully in the section, "Competence 6: Managing information".

'Ethically'

Have you considered ethical issues? If you plan to use the information you have found in a written report, for example, you can't simply copy it out and present it as your own work, with no references to the information sources, as this is plagiarism. If you are using statistics, quotes or references from other sources, you must always refer to those sources clearly and accurately. This is also true if you are adapting or rewording other peoples’ work. This is known as using information ethically. Referencing is covered more fully in the section: "Competence 6: Managing information".

You may want to record any key actions that you want to implement in your daily practice, or any reflections related to your learning, in the 'Taking action' section. You can type straight into the PDF documents, which can then be saved onto your computer and uploaded to your e-Portfolio, as evidence of your learning.