Caring for People with Learning Disabilities

People with learning disabilities are one of the most vulnerable groups in society (Department of Health 2001). We aim to provide readers – those who provide or wish to provide health care and support for adults with learning disabilities – with a foundation for their interventions. Contributors to this text come from a variety of backgrounds – in clinical practice and the academic world. The contributors are dedicated to creating and maintaining a positive environment for all; they believe that each person with a learning disability is a unique being, with individual needs and ambitions; they also believe that people with learning disabilities can lead full and rewarding lives – indeed, many already do so.

It is acknowledged that there are some people with learning disabilities who are marginalized by society, and experience prejudice, bullying, insensitive care and discrimination. The effects of these can have a damaging impact on the individual (Department of Health 2001). The majority of people with learning disabilities want to live an ‘ordinary’ life, having the independence and choice to make decisions about their lives (King’s Fund 1999). There may be those who cannot make the choice or decision themselves and the Mental Capacity Act 2005 sets out ways in which those who cannot make those decisions are protected (Department of Health 2005b). Caring for and supporting those who have a learning disability can be complex, but at the same time rewarding – contributing to the person’s well-being can be very satisfying for all concerned.

We are resolute in the belief that people with a learning disability are worthy of the best possible care and support; for you to do this, it is vital that you have an insight into and understanding of the key issues that impinge on the person’s life, both in the community and also in the various health and social care settings. Those people who have a learning disability and are supported effectively in the community can become full, participating members of the community. We encourage you to promote the possibilities associated with living with a learning disability, by providing innovative and creative approaches to care and support and by acting as a knowledgeable doer and, most importantly, an advocate. Partnership working is key to successful and client-centered care; it is essential if care and support are to be delivered in the most appropriate manner that you are encouraged to apply this approach to care delivery in the situations in which you are working. Stressing the importance of partnership working and acknowledging the benefits that this may bring the individual mean looking beyond a disease-oriented approach to one in which the patient is central. Such an approach is on a par with the current Government’s desires to make available a health service that is designed around the patient instead of the service (Department of Health 2006).

Nursing students, those who are undertaking NVQ/SNVQ, Access to Nursing and Cadet nursing programs of study, and those who are returning to practice will be the prime users of this text – however, not exclusively those cited. This is not a text that will provide you with a panacea for all of the needs of those who have a learning disability; it encourages the reader to identify further areas of importance that may not have been discussed here and to investigate further and deeper. Within the text, the terms ‘nurse’, ‘student’ and ‘nursing’ have been used. The terms and the philosophies applied can be adapted to suit a number of health and social care workers at various levels and in a variety of settings in order to develop caring, informed skills.

We utilizes up-to-date information that the reader will need in order to begin to understand how to help, support and care for those individuals with learning disabilities in the institutional setting (e.g. the hospital) and in the community (e.g. the person’s own home setting). The information is arranged in such a way that it reflects current health and social care practice in a user-friendly manner; furthermore, information is related to practice issues that may be encountered when working with people with a learning disability, their families and friends. We would not anticipate that the text be read from cover to cover in one sitting; rather, it can be used as a reference book (a resource, a reader), be it in the clinical setting, the classroom or your own home.

The text can be considered as a handbook or a manual that has an up-to-date evidence base; it is anticipated that it will challenge and encourage the reader to acquire a questioning approach to care provision, emphasizing the important relationship between theory and practice. You may be studying at the moment; if this is the case, you are encouraged to attend all of your classes associated with your current program of study, and we would suggest that you use this text to supplement your current learning.

Most of the content relates and refers to some key health and social care documents, publications and statues that are used here to inform debate. One key government publication – Valuing People: A New Strategy for Learning Disabilities for the 21st Century (Department of Health 2001) – is central, explicitly or implicitly, to deliberations.

The wide-ranging aim is to facilitate understanding associated with essential aspects of care in an attempt to enhance safe and effective care, and to encourage and generate discussion. It is anticipated that the outcome will improve the quality-of-care provision that is underpinned by an informed knowledge base. This is a fundamental text that can enhance personal and professional growth in relation to learning disability care.

اخر الاخبار

اخبار العتبة العباسية المقدسة

قسم شؤون المعارف يحصي منجزاته العلمية لعام 2025

شعبة الخطابة الحسينية النسوية تقيم برنامج مراقي العلا التوعوي لطالبات مدارس كربلاء

معهد القرآن الكريم النسوي يقيم مجلس عزاء بذكرى وفاة السيدة زينب (عليها السلام)

قسم الشؤون الفكرية يقدم محاضرة توعوية لمجموعة من طلبة مدارس بغداد

المزيد

الآخبار الصحية

طبيب يكشف أفضل مكمل غذائي لتحسين المزاج ودعم الصحة النفسية

دراسة جديدة تكشف أضرار الأطعمة الجاهزة على القلب ؟

6 أطعمة طبيعية تهدئ الزكام دون أدوية.. تعرف عليهم

ماذا يحدث لأعراض الزكام عند تناول الثوم بانتظام؟

المزيد

الآخبار التكنلوجية

ابتكار ثوري في بطاريات السيارات الكهربائية.. سعة أعلى 4 مرات

ماذا يحدث لجسمك عند شرب الماء الساخن يوميا؟

7 فوائد "خفية" لشرب شاي الكركديه كل يوم

دراسة تكشف قدرة الحيتان على سماع الأصوات منخفضة وعالية التردد من مسافة بعيدة

المزيد

مواضيع ذات صلة

Parents with Learning Disabilities CONCLUSION

PROVISION OF SUPPORT

CARING FOR CHILDREN

EUGENICS AND ETHICAL ISSUES

PARENTING

DISCRIMINATION AND DIVERSITY

THE HISTORICAL PERSPECTIVE

Parents with Learning Disabilities

Legislation and Learning Disabilities CONCLUSION

LEGAL SAFEGUARDS

MENTAL CAPACITY ACT 2005

THE HUMAN RIGHTS ACT 1998