Search results for ‘Subject term:"learning disabilities"’ Sort:
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The hospital work
- Author:
- ARCHER Phillip
- Journal article citation:
- Community Connecting, 1, Summer 2005, p.15.
- Publisher:
- Community Connecting
Sometimes people with learning difficulties find it very hard if they have to go into hospital when they are unwell. Reports on a book produced by Barnet Hospital, which involved social care services, people with learning difficulties and their families, and aims to help people with learning difficulties to communicate their personal care needs and other information.
Does he have sugar in his tea? Communication between people with learning disabilities, their carers and hospital staff
- Author:
- BELL Ruth
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 17(2), 2012, pp.57-63.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
A consistent theme in the literature has been the detrimental and sometimes fatal consequences of poor communication in relation to the care of people with learning disabilities. This study sought to evaluate a hospital passport tool designed to provide information and improve communication between people with learning disabilities and hospital staff. The Traffic Light Hospital Assessment was designed to provide essential person-centred information in a user friendly format, including life-saving information such as whether a person has dysphagia. This qualitative study was designed to explore people's experiences of good and bad communication in hospital and their experiences of how the passport impacts on that process of communication. The study included: semi-structured interviews with 12 family carers and health and social care staff; a focus group of 8 adults with learning disabilities; and a reflexive journal analysis. The findings consistently reflected the view that the Traffic Light Hospital Assessment Passport can act as a useful multi-agency resource to improve communication and continuity of care for people with learning disabilities. The reasons for poor communication emerging from the study are discussed, together with recommendations for practice development.
Freddie's story
- Authors:
- JESSOP William, (Director)
- Publisher:
- Blue Apple Theatre
- Publication year:
- 2011
- Pagination:
- (20 mins.), DVD
- Place of publication:
- Winchester
A training film for medical and health professionals which looks at people with learning disabilities in a hospital environment. The film follows the story of Freddie, who has learning disabilities, from his arrival in hospital, through to his diagnosis, giving consent and entering a ward. It highlights points of good practice. It also stresses the importance of good communication and treating people with learning disabilities with respect. The film features a mix of learning disabled actors and medical practitioners.
Managing the needs of people who have a learning disability
- Author:
- BRITTLE Richard
- Journal article citation:
- Nursing Times, 9.03.04, 2004, pp.28-29.
- Publisher:
- Nursing Times
A recent report from the National Patient Safety Agency has highlighted the risks facing people with a learning disability when they enter hospital. Recent policies and current patterns of care will see increasing numbers of people with a learning disability accessing generic health services, including hospitals. Nurses may need to develop suitable approaches to deal with the demand. This article offers some practical considerations.
Effects of relocation on the communication and challenging behaviours of four people with severe learning disabilities
- Authors:
- MACLEOD Fiona J., et al
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 30(1), March 2002, pp.32-37.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Describes an evaluation of the effects of relocation on the challenging and communicative behaviours of four individuals with severe learning disabilities who moved from a hospital for people with learning disabilities into a community project home. The study was longitudinal, spanning a period of 3 years. Results found that there was an overall decrease in the individuals' adaptive behaviours and inactivity levels, whilst there were increases in their communicative and challenging behaviours. Concludes that the participants appeared to increase all their interactions within the community environment, including their communication and challenging behaviours.
“Reasonable adjustments” under the UK's Equality Act 2010: an enquiry into the care and treatment to patients with intellectual disabilities in acute hospital settings
- Authors:
- REDLEY Marcus, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 32(6), 2019, pp.1412-1420.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Objectives: To understand the views of qualified medical practitioners regarding “reasonable adjustments” and the quality of the care and treatment provided to adults with intellectual disabilities when admitted to acute hospitals as inpatients. Methods: Semi‐structured interviews took place with 14 medical practitioners, seven from each of two acute hospitals, with a thematic analysis of the resulting data. Results: All 14 medical practitioners reported problems in the diagnosis and treatment of patients with intellectual disabilities. Most participants attributed these difficulties to communication problems and/or behaviours that, in the context of a hospital ward, were non‐conforming. However, a minority reported that, because they were likely to have multiple comorbid health conditions, patients with intellectual disabilities were more complex. In addition, half of all these respondents reported making little use of “reasonable adjustments” introduced to improve the quality of the care received by this group of patients. Conclusions: Medical practitioners should make better use of the “reasonable adjustments” introduced in the UK to address inequities in care and treatment received by patients with intellectual disabilities. However, training should also focus on the biomedical complexities often presented by these men and women. (Publisher abstract)
Development and Introduction of “Communication Passport” in an adult inpatient psychiatric unit for persons with intellectual disabilities: a brief report from Singapore
- Authors:
- SAJITH Sreedharan Geetha, TEO Yafen, LING Candice Sarah
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, 15(2), 2018, pp.166-170.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Persons with intellectual disabilities may present with multiple and complex needs including communication difficulties which may contribute to their challenging behaviours. Having a holistic account of each individual in terms of his or her needs, likes, and dislikes and behavioural issues may help to prevent communication breakdown between the persons with intellectual disabilities and caregivers which may in turn improve their quality of life and reduce their challenging behaviours. Communication passport is a practical and person‐centred document providing a special and efficient way of sorting and presenting important and complex information about the person into an accessible manner. The development and introduction of communication passports in an acute inpatient unit for adults with intellectual disabilities at the Institute of Mental Health, a tertiary psychiatric hospital in Singapore, is described. The study team developed a communication passport through literature review, focus group discussions and liaison with caregivers and patients with intellectual disabilities. After an initial pilot for 6 months, improvements were made in the content and presentation. It was designed in such a way that useful information about the patient's personal and communication needs as well as behavioural problems and interventions were easily passed on to the community caregivers at the point of patient's discharge from the hospital. The final format of the communication passport consisted of a 12‐page document encompassing multiple aspects including communication and behavioural profile. Our work may provide the necessary framework and directions in developing communication passports for services providers caring for people with intellectual disabilities. (Edited publisher abstract)
Commentary on “Does he have sugar in his tea?”
- Authors:
- HESLOP Pauline, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Tizard Learning Disability Review, 17(2), 2012, pp.64-68.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
This paper provides a commentary on the previous paper by Ruth Bell in this journal issue. Bell’s paper concluded that a hospital passport system can play a key role in supporting the effective care of people with learning disabilities. This commentary outlines some ‘reasonable adjustments’ for people with learning disabilities in primary and secondary care. It then discusses 3 issues. The first is whether there is a specific need for a hospital passport or whether some other comprehensive and multipurpose document would be more effective. Second, it discusses the need to connect individuals, primary care, and secondary care so that people with learning disabilities attending an Annual Health Check or entering secondary health care already have an up-to-date comprehensive document which they bring with them. The third is the need for hospital staff to be requesting and using such documents. The article concludes that personal health files that include hospital passport-type documents could make a difference and provide a better link between individuals and primary and secondary healthcare services.
The experiences of adults with intellectual disabilities and their carers in general hospitals: a focus group study
- Authors:
- GIBBS S.M., BROWN M.J., MUIR W.J.
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual Disability Research, 52(12), December 2008, pp.1061-1077.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
People with intellectual disabilities (ID) have higher levels of health needs compared with the general population, many of which are unrecognised and unmet. While there has been interest and research into the primary health provision for this group, there has been a more limited focus on addressing their care received in general hospitals. Access to health care has predominated in the literature, with less attention being paid to the experiences of people with ID as users of general hospital care. A qualitative focus group methodology was used. Eleven adults with ID, nine parents and five paid carers of adults with ID participated. The focus groups were audiotaped and transcriptions were analysed using principles of grounded theory. The analysed data highlighted key themes identified from the experiences of participants. These were the interrelated issues of feelings, particularly anxiety and fear, communication and behaviour problems; the practicalities of being in or attending hospitals, including the role played by carers; and issues around perceived discrimination and negative comments. The experiences of participants in this study concur with and add to concern expressed in recent reports and published research. Wide ranging implications are discussed for further research, wider policy development, clinical practice, local health service provision and education of health professionals.
Secondary healthcare and learning disability: results of consensus development conferences
- Authors:
- CUMELLA Stuart, MARTIN David
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Learning Disabilities, 8(1), March 2004, pp.30-40.
- Publisher:
- Sage
Many people with learning disabilities live shorter lives and have poorer health than the rest of the population. This results in part from less access to healthcare, and several studies have evaluated ways of improving primary healthcare for this group. Much less attention has been paid to the experiences of people with a learning disability in general hospitals. This exploratory study used consensus development conferences of people with a learning disability, their supporters, family, professionals and managers. It was reported that hospitals frequently failed to communicate with, provide emotional support for, or adapt to the specific needs of patients with a learning disability. Hospital staff noted that community services failed to provide information about patients, and that hospital staff lacked training in communicating with people with a learning disability. Fieldwork identified a range of solutions to deal with these problems, most of which involved incremental changes in hospital and community health procedures.