This new report is an important addition to the evidence base specifically on case management and more generally in terms of interventions to reduce hospital admissions but, consistent with other studies in this area, can’t give definitive answers. Much of what already exists in relation to virtual wards is anecdotal or lacks detail and it’s [read the full story…]
The recent publication of Raising Our Sights, the DH report into support for people with profound intellectual and multiple disabilities set out a challenge for everyone concerned with understanding and responding to people with such disabilities. A number of projects have produced practical guides for involving and engaging with people, for example, Mencap’s Involve Me [read the full story…]
There is a body of literature looking at parental stress for parents of children with disabilities, but the researchers in this Canadian study were interested in looking specifically at a comparison of parental stress for parents of children with foetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) and those with children with autism spectrum disorder. They reported the [read the full story…]
Introduction This study, carried out in Scotland, is relevant to commissioners and general practitioners, as it demonstrates why there are variations in prescribing practice, and how these can be managed. The authors have noticed that there is “significant variation in the quality of prescribing” and they have carried out an ethnographic study into why [read the full story…]
While depression is the leading cause of disability for both males and females, the burden of depression is 50% higher for females. In fact, depression is the leading cause of disease burden for women in both high-income and low- and middle-income countries (WHO, 2008). Research has shown that women with unidentified and untreated maternal depression [read the full story…]
BILD’s communication factsheet suggests that estimates of the proportion of people with learning disabilities who have difficulties with communication vary between 50% and 90%. For many people with learning disabilities, this communication will be non-verbal, or working at a pre-lingual level, which mean the use of many means including gesture, facial expression, sign language, picture [read the full story…]
Over 1 billion people on Earth smoke tobacco. WHO figures tell us that 80% of the smoking population live in low-middle income countries, most of which are not protected by any kind of smoke-free public health legislation. China is a particular black-spot in this regard. It has the largest tobacco smoking population in the world [read the full story…]
There have been a number of studies testing attributions of support staff and their impact on helping behaviour when supporting people with learning disabilities anf challenging behaviour. We posted about one such study in January this year which looked at the impact of using vignettes to measure helping behaviour and used Weiner’s theory to explain [read the full story…]
When we think of community involvement and participation in the 21st century, it is impossible not to consider the importance of access to information technology and the use of social media as key elements of this. The Rix Centre for example has worked over a number of years to improve access for people with learning [read the full story…]
Multi-sensory environments or snoezelen rooms are used in a variety of services supporting people with learning disabilities although there has until recently been a paucity of critical evaluation of their effectiveness. Although there are a number of examples in the literature of a wide range of positive outcomes when Snoezelen and non-Snoezelen environments are contrasted, there [read the full story…]
