Search results for ‘Subject term:"learning disabilities"’ Sort:
Results 1 - 2 of 2
Ageing and health status in adults with intellectual disabilities: results of the European Pomona II study
- Authors:
- HAVEMAN Meindert, et al
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Intellectual and Developmental Disability, 36(1), March 2011, pp.49-60.
- Publisher:
- Taylor and Francis
POMONA II was a European Commission funded public health project collecting information from 14 countries using a set of key health indicators specifically relevant for people with intellectual disabilities. This research focused on age-specific differences relating to environmental and lifestyle factors and the 17 medical conditions measured by the POMONA Checklist of Health Indicators. The article describes how information was collected using the POMONA Health Interview Survey and Evaluation Form from a sample of 1,253 participants in Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, and the United Kingdom. It then presents the results of the analysis, with tables showing characteristics of people with intellectual disabilities in the study, frequency of social contacts with relatives or friends according to age, lifestyle risk factors in people with intellectual disabilities according to age, and general and age-specific prevalence rates of health problems. The authors discuss how healthy older adults with intellectual disabilities are with regard to lifestyle factors, and whether there are health disparities between older adults with and without intellectual disabilities. They note that some evidence of health disparities was found for older people with intellectual disabilities, particularly in terms of under diagnosed or inadequately managed preventable health conditions.
Assessing psychosocial work-related stress across five European countries: implications for workforce development
- Authors:
- DENNY Margaret, WELLS John, CUNNINGHAM Jennifer
- Journal article citation:
- Journal of Mental Health Training Education and Practice, 6(2), 2011, pp.93-103.
- Publisher:
- Emerald
The European Union's social and employment policy emphasises that member states should develop workforce development policies that combat work-related stress. However there is little comparative information on the nature of psychosocial job strain and the experiences of staff working in the vocational rehabilitative sector in mental health and intellectual disabilities. This paper reports the findings of a small-scale study, using a cross-sectional job content questionnaire (JCQ) and focus groups, to explore psychosocial job stress among managers and support workers in five European countries. Findings from the JCQ showed that just under 20 percent of the sample exhibited symptoms of job stress. The focus groups identified the key stressors as: balancing work demands with time available to carry out tasks; poor communication within organisations; and feeling unsupported in one's work. As a result of this work, which is part of the Reducing Occupational Stress Employment Project (ROSE), it was found that there are no national or European data collected upon which to base effective interventions to combat occupational stress and no effective mechanisms in the workplace to deal with occupational stress for professionals working in this sector. Based on the findings, a web site was developed that provides information to managers, trainers, and support workers to manage personal and organisational stressors and raise awareness of the issue.