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Commentary on “Human rights training: impact on attitudes and knowledge”
- Author:
- KIDD Jo
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 17(2), 2012, pp.88-91.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
This paper seeks to provide a commentary on the previous paper by Michelle Redman et al in this journal issue. Redman investigated the impact of a particular approach to human rights training on the knowledge and attitudes of a group of support staff in the health service. The results suggested that this training had a significant effect on knowledge about human rights but very little effect on attitudes towards human rights. This commentary poses the question as to whether human rights training can have an effect on attitudes towards human rights and, if so, which approach is the most effective. It outlines the distinction between 2 different types of approach to human rights training: one that assumes that the concept of human rights already runs through the work of public service providers; and the other that suggests that human rights training should challenge pre-existing beliefs and assumptions. The commentary suggests that the second of these approaches, the ‘activist’ approach, would go further towards winning hearts and minds. Suggestions on the kind of training needed to change people’s attitudes are provided, and underline the importance of the need for people with learning disabilities to have the space to tell their own stories.
Staff beliefs about why people with learning disabilities self-harm: a Q-methodology study
- Authors:
- DICK Katie, et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 39(3), September 2011, pp.233-242.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Staff beliefs about why people with learning disabilities self-harm are important because they can affect the way that staff respond to the behaviour. Existing research into staff beliefs about self-harm by people with learning disabilities is limited and restricted to forensic services. This study used Q-methodology to explore staff beliefs about why people with learning disabilities self-harm. Participants included 33 staff from community teams and day services for people with learning disabilities. Five viewpoints were identified: self-harm is individual, complex and emotionally meaningful; self-harm is a means to communicate distress; self-harm is difficult to understand but seems to be a way to modify emotional states; self-harm is a result of having learning disabilities and being different; and self-harm is meaningful within relationships. These viewpoints represent the variety of theories and discussions in the literature. It is proposed that some of these viewpoints may result in more helpful responses to self-harm than others. The authors concluded that it would be useful for staff to receive more training about self-harm. This could improve care for people with learning disabilities who self-harm.
Assessment – what is important to this person?
- Author:
- WILLIAMS Paul
- Journal article citation:
- Community Living, 23(3), Spring 2010, pp.19-20.
- Publisher:
- Hexagon Publishing
Assessment is the systematic collection, recording and interpretation of information for a particular purpose. In the past, it has been usual for some very negative information to be collected about people with learning disabilities, sometimes as a supposed way of identifying needs, but sometimes as a trigger for control, subversion and oppression. This short article urges students to develop positive values towards people with learning disabilities and an orientation towards positive information about them. These principles, the author suggests, can, and should be, reflected in assessment.
Attitudes and self-efficacy towards adults with mild intellectual disability among staff in acute psychiatric wards: an empirical investigation
- Authors:
- MESA Sue, TSAKANIKOS Elias
- Journal article citation:
- Advances in Mental Health and Intellectual Disabilities, 8(2), 2014, pp.79-90.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to investigate whether acute inpatient psychiatric staffs’ attitudes and self-efficacy towards adults with mild intellectual disability, were different than towards the general mental health population. And whether their understanding of the policy for those with mental illness and intellectual disability differed. Design/methodology/approach: The study is a between-subject design, using a self-administered postal questionnaire. The sample was all qualified staff from the acute inpatient psychiatric provision of an inner London borough. Potential participants were randomly assigned to two research groups, half being given a questionnaire regarding people with intellectual disability and the other half an identical one regarding people with mental illness. Comparisons were made between the two. Findings: The majority of staff were unaware of the current policy direction for adults with intellectual disability although were on the whole in agreement to the idea that they should access mainstream services. Staff overall did not have more negative attitudes to those with intellectual disability although were less likely to empower or encourage self-advocacy. Staff were significantly less confident that they had sufficient training and experience, and in their perceived ability to be able to communicate, assess and treat adults with mild intellectual disability when compared to those with mental illness. Research limitations/implications: The response rate and small sample size is a limitation. Further research could usefully look at whether self-efficacy and attitudes differ in different models of mainstream psychiatric care. Originality/value: Government policy in the UK regarding services for people with intellectual disability advocates for inclusion and equality (Chaplin and Taggart, 2012). Those requiring psychiatric care should access this from mainstream services (Department of Health, 2001, 2009, 2011; Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities et al., 2004; Bradley, 2009.) There are, however, no UK-based studies investigating the views of mainstream acute inpatient psychiatric staff towards their role. Intellectual disability staff have concerns about their attitudes and self-efficacy and it is know that acute care is the setting where most adults with intellectual disability will come across mainstream psychiatric staff. Findings have relevance to managers and staff in both intellectual disability and psychiatric services and could be considered in the context of trying to work together as is the direction of policy. (Edited publisher abstract)
Enabling self-advocacy: working hand-in-hand with people with learning disabilities
- Author:
- CALLUS Anne-Marie
- Journal article citation:
- Learning Disability Today, June 2012, pp.22-24.
- Publisher:
- Pavilion
- Place of publication:
- Hove
The responses of people with learning disabilities clearly show how important it is to take their views into account. Yet, it is often the views of professionals that are listened to. This leads to a propensity for interactions with people with learning disabilities to be based primarily on a consideration of their impairments, rather than from a consideration of their wishes, aspirations or perceptions. This article suggests that to make self-advocacy truly enabling requires an understanding of how the term ‘learning disability’ is understood. It discusses the notion of ‘normal’, and how learning disabilities imply ‘not normal’ – which can have deleterious effects on the lives of those with learning disabilities, including social rejection, a lack of control over their own lives, and a lack of opportunity.
Human rights training: impact on attitudes and knowledge
- Authors:
- REDMAN Michelle, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 17(2), 2012, pp.80-87.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
People with learning disabilities are particularly vulnerable to victimisation and discrimination. There is therefore a clear need for human rights education for both staff working with people with learning disabilities and people with learning disabilities. The aim of this paper is to examine factors contributing to effective human rights training for staff. A study sought to investigate the impact of human rights awareness training (HRAT) on healthcare staff’s knowledge and attitudes towards human rights. A total of 23 support staff in an NHS learning disability service were given HRAT. The participants completed a ‘human rights based approach knowledge quiz’ and an ‘attitudes to human rights questionnaire’ before and after training. The results indicated that HRAT had a significant effect on human rights knowledge scores; however, it did not create a significant effect on attitudes towards human rights. Future training would benefit from a greater focus on psychological theories of attitudes and behaviour. This may help to facilitate development of positive attitudes towards human rights. Training models with a greater emphasis on staff's emotional responses, defences and the impact of organisational culture may allow a deeper understanding of the complexities of delivering effective human rights training.
‘Change can only be a good thing:’ staff views on the introduction of a harm minimisation policy in a Forensic Learning Disability service
- Authors:
- FISH Rebecca, WOODWARD Sarah, DUPEROUZEL Helen
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 40(1), March 2012, pp.37-45.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Harm minimisation with people who self-injure involves providing advice to the client on how to injure themselves safely using clean instruments and how to care for wounds. NICE guidelines now recommend the discussion of harm minimisation with clients who repeated self-injure. This study aimed to investigate staff views on using harm minimisation with people with a learning disability who self-harm. An online survey was designed, and all staff at a secure unit for people with learning disabilities were invited to take part. The survey used multiple-choice questions as well as providing room for open comments. There were 71 completed surveys, 52 of which were from staff in ward-based positions. A total of 85% of the staff were in favour of the introduction of a harm minimisation policy. They felt that this policy could benefit some but not all of the clients, and that staff and clients should be able to choose whether to be involved in using harm minimisation. Common requests for inclusion were: clear, individualised guidelines that include roles and responsibilities; staff and client support systems; client education and staff training; and advice about duty of care issues. The article concludes that services should consider implementing a harm minimisation policy on an individual basis.
Learning disabilities and criminal justice: custody sergeants’ perceptions of alleged offenders with learning disabilities
- Author:
- HELLENBACH Michael
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 40(1), March 2012, pp.15-22.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Despite increased attention by the government towards providing support to people with learning disabilities within the criminal justice system, research suggests that people with learning disabilities are still disadvantaged when they come to the attention of criminal justice authorities. This study aimed to explore attitudes and opinions held by custody sergeants towards offenders with learning disabilities. Unstructured interviews were held with 14 custody sergeants from Cheshire, Merseyside and Greater Manchester. Three themes emerged from analysis of the interview transcripts: identification of people with a learning disability; professional identity; and pressure and problems. The findings showed that there is a lot of confusion about what characterises a person with learning disabilities. It is argued that learning disability is constructed in relation to concepts of fairness and justice, which a custody sergeant may utilise in accordance with their perception of professional identity. These constructs influence custody sergeants in their decision about how individual detainees should be treated and what kind of support should be made accessible to them whilst being detained. Pressure resulting from performance targets further compromised a detainee’s need for support to be sufficiently considered.
The relationship between challenging behaviour, burnout and cognitive variables in staff working with people who have intellectual disabilities
- Authors:
- MILLS S., ROSE J.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 55(9), September 2011, pp.844-857.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Previous research leads to the hypothesis that negative emotions and the way in which staff perceive challenging behaviour may mediate the relationship between burnout in those working with people with intellectual disabilities (ID) and clients’ challenging behaviour. The aim of this study was to confirm the nature of this relationship. Seventy-eight staff working in variety of service settings in England completed measures of burnout, challenging behaviour and perceptions about challenging behaviour. The perceptions explored included beliefs about the timeline of behaviour, staff's perception of whether they have control over the behaviour, beliefs about clients' ability to control the behaviour and staff's negative emotional responses. Significant positive correlations were found between challenging behaviour and burnout, challenging behaviour and cognitive variables, and cognitive variables and burnout. Regression analyses demonstrated that negative emotions did indeed mediate the relationship between challenging behaviour and burnout. The results also show that higher levels of challenging behaviour were correlated with higher levels of fear of assault.
Where should people with dementia live? Using the views of service users to inform models of care
- Authors:
- FOBAT Liz, WILKINSON Heather
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 36(1), March 2008, pp.6-12.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This paper reports on research that illuminates how people with a learning disability understand dementia and indicates the implications of these understandings for developing appropriate models of care. As this new policy and practice area struggles to provide appropriate and effective models of care for people with a learning disability and dementia, an awareness of service users’ understandings of dementia leads to a number of important insights. The wider research programme from which this paper is drawn aims to identify best practice in supporting people with learning disabilities to stay in their own homes as they grow older and develop dementia. A combination of focus groups, ethnography and individual interviews were conducted at eight sites across England. Participants were people with a learning disability who had dementia, and those who have lived with someone with dementia. The findings have the potential to improve support to this population as they grow older.