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Exercising choice and control - women with learning disabilities and contraception
- Author:
- McCARTHY Michelle
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 38(4), December 2010, pp.293-302.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
This research project investigated contraception use amongst women with learning disabilities. Semi-structured in-depth interviews were held with 23 women with learning disabilities, aged between 20 and 51, about their experience of being prescribed contraception. In addition, a postal survey was returned by 162 general practitioners across two counties in England which included questions about their contraception prescribing practices to women with learning disabilities, and how they dealt with issues of capacity to consent to treatment. A service user group was also involved at different stages of the project. Most of the women reported that other people had made the key decisions about starting to use contraception and which method to use. Both the women and the doctors said they liked having a third party, such as a staff member or relative, present for the consultations. Many of the doctors were unclear about responding to issues of capacity to consent to treatment. The article discusses: the constraints on the women’s ability to make choices; the presence of carers in medical consultations; responding to capacity issues; and the need for training for healthcare professionals. An accessible research summary was produced to make the process and findings of the research available to the women with learning disabilities who took part in the study, as well as to any others who were interested, and extracts of this are included in this article.
Discussing the menopause with women with learning disabilities
- Authors:
- McCARTHY Michelle, MILLARD Lorraine
- Journal article citation:
- British Journal of Learning Disabilities, 31(1), 2003, pp.9-17.
- Publisher:
- Wiley
Traditionally, little attention has been paid to the menopause as it affects women with learning disabilities. Consequently, older women with learning disabilities have rarely been adequately prepared for, or supported through, what for most women is a significant 'change of life'. None of the existing literature focuses on the women's perspectives, but rather, looks at menopause from a medical angle, in particular focusing on the timing of onset. The research study described in the present paper is an attempt to gain some insights into the ways in which women with learning disabilities perceive the menopause. The main informants were women with learning disabilities themselves, but also general practitioners, staff in learning disability services and parents who still cared for their middle-aged daughters at home. The research project also involved the non-disabled researchers working alongside two groups of women with learning disabilities, who acted as advisors and consultants to the project.