Reasonable adjustments for people with a learning disability

Guides on how reasonable adjustments should be made to health services and adjustments to help people with learning disabilities to access services. Click here to access government guides

Preventing Falls In People With Learning Disabilities: Making Reasonable Adjustments

Read Government guidance here

Psychotropic drugs and people with learning disabilities or autism

Describes a system to track prescribing of antipsychotics, antidepressants and other psychotropics for people with learning disabilities, autism or both. Read government guidance here

Five safe, sustainable and productive staffing improvement resources

NHS Improvement has published five safe, sustainable and productive staffing improvement resources in the areas of maternity services, adult inpatients in acute care, district nursing services, learning disability services and mental health.

Mental Health Bulletin: 2016-17 Annual Report

This publication provides the most comprehensive picture available of people who used NHS funded secondary mental health, learning disabilities and autism services in England during the financial year 2016-17. Click here to read further.

Diabetes and learning disability, reasonable adjustments needed along a diabetes pathway

The prevalence rates of both Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes were identified to be higher in people with a learning disability compared to the general population.

To ensure the same care is available to people with a learning disability, NHS RightCare has published a pathway for diabetes including the reasonable adjustments expected to be made for people with a learning disability. This document will support commissioners applying the NHS RightCare Pathway for diabetes to people with learning disability, so that all receive the same level of care, understanding and outcomes.

Transforming care: views sought on NHS quality checkers’ toolkits

NHS England is testing toolkits for quality checkers to use in the assessment of services for people with autism and/or learning disabilities including GPs, community services, dental, acute care, accident and emergency and mental health.

These draft toolkits have been co-produced with people with a learning disability, autism or both and include health issues that are important to them. Most of the toolkits have been tested in some NHS services, but NHS England wants to gain the views of people who work in the services, commissioners and others who are interested in this work. The closing date of 1 December 2017.

People with learning disabilities and behaviour that challenges should be better cared for in the community, says NICE

Local authorities and NHS bodies should provide specialist community care for people with learning disabilities who behave in a way that challenges to avoid admissions to psychiatric wards or residential homes, new draft guidance from NICE says. Click here for news piece

The latest from NHS Improvement's improvement hub

NHS Improvement is continuing to add resources to its improvement hub. Here's some of the most recent:

• Medway NHS Foundation Trust: orthopaedics handover
• How do boards govern for quality improvement?
• Supporting junior doctors in safe prescribing
• Learning disability and human rights

Supporting women with learning disabilities to access cervical screening

This information, originally developed in North Tyneside, and published by Public Health England, is to support women with learning disabilities to access cervical screening.

People with learning disabilities: health checks audit tool

A tool to assess the quality of annual health checks for people with learning disabilities. Click here

People with learning disabilities: making reasonable adjustments

These guides, recently updated by Public Health England, explain why reasonable adjustments must be made to health services and what adjustments help people with learning disabilities access services.

Developing support and services for children and young people with a learning disability, autism or both

This document from NHS England provides guidance for Transforming Care Partnerships (and their local CCG or local authority partners) in commissioning support and services for children and young people with learning disability, autism or both.

Overuse of Antipsychotic Medications for Developmental Disorders

A new study finds that antipsychotic medication is often prescribed to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), often in the absence of an accompanying psychiatric diagnosis. Common IDD include Down syndrome, fetal alcohol syndrome, and autism.

Canadian researchers believe the findings suggest that antipsychotic medications are being used to manage behavioral issues, a practice that is only recommended if other options have failed.

The study was conducted by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) and Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES) and appears in The Canadian Journal of Psychiatry.

Delivering high quality end of life care for people who have a learning disability

This guidance from NHS England provides resources and tips for commissioners, service providers and health and social care staff providing, or delivering care to people with a learning disability at the end of their lives.

Imperial lead the way for patients with learning disabilities

Read more about a system of purple pathways developed by Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust  to help patients with learning disabilities or autism experience the best journey through their hospitals.

The inpatient healthcare economy for people with learning disabilities and/or autism spectrum disorder

Centre for Disability Research, University of Lancaster (CeDR) - 
This report analysis the market for inpatient services for people with learning disabilities in England. The analysis finds that approximately half of these services are run by the independent sector, services which are valued at over a quarter of a billion pounds per year. The report calls for greater scrutiny and accountability for the independent sector to ensure high quality of care and patient safety.

• Report

People with learning disabilities: making reasonable adjustments

These guides explain why reasonable adjustments must be made to services and what adjustments help people with learning disabilities access services.  They have recently been updated.

One in 6 women with learning disabilities has attempted suicide

The lifetime prevalence of suicide attempts was much higher for women who had been diagnosed with learning disabilities (16.6 percent) compared to women who had not (3.3 percent), new research has found. Men with learning disabilities also were more likely to have attempted suicide compared to men without learning disorders (7.7 percent vs 2.1 percent).

NHS England to invest in building the right support for people with a learning disability

Patients with a learning disability, autism or both are set to benefit from over £10 million investment by NHS England to help them lead more independent lives, closer to their friends and family.

The funding will support fourteen local Transforming Care Partnerships – made up of NHS organisations, local authorities and NHS England commissioners, working closely with people who use services, their families and providers – to develop new, high-quality, community services for people in their area.