BackToo many people with a learning disability are not getting access to the right care and treatment at the right time, leading to avoidable deaths in some cases, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) warns.
One of the biggest barriers to achieving good care for people with a learning disability was an overall lack of understanding of their needs, according to recent case investigations by the Ombudsman Service. These cases showed alarming gaps in care provided for people with a learning disability, which meant that in some cases, vital opportunities to prevent their deaths were missed.
These included cases where the patient's condition was not diagnosed quickly enough, where the proper checks to assess their initial condition were not made, and in one case where a patient was deemed too 'difficult to assess' meaning their symptoms went unnoticed until it was too late.
Research from the charity Mencap has found that 75 per cent of GPs have received no training to help them to treat people with a learning disability. Mencap's research also shows that there are approximately 900,000 with a learning disability, but only 200,000 are registered with their GPs as having a learning disability. Being registered as having a learning disability with a GP means that patient will benefit from an annual health check, which can often uncover treatable conditions.
Julie Mellor, Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman said: 'It is really tragic that the lives of people with a learning disability are in some cases being cut short because they aren't getting the right care and treatment at the right time.
'That's why we are launching the Complain for Change campaign to tell people how they can complain, so people with a learning disability and their families can make problems known and get them put right. We want those working in health and care to make sure the needs of patients are being met.
The Complain for Change campaign has provided leaflets in Mencap centres across London since March, and from today we will be advertising in hundreds of GP surgeries across London and promoting the campaign nationally with patient advocacy groups, Healthwatch and the local NHS. This is the first time that simple and accessible information has been provided for people with a learning disability in GP surgeries on how to make a complaint. PHSO has also created a short animated video for people with a learning disability which is being shown through advocacy groups and can be found at www.complainforchange.org.
The campaign seeks to drive forward change in health services by demonstrating how making a complaint can make a real difference and sometimes prevent avoidable deaths of people with a learning disability. Research has shown that people with a learning disability are one of the groups least likely to raise a complaint with the PHSO and they tend to have a low awareness of our services. The campaign is part of the PHSO's work to make it easier for people know who to complain to.
More information about the campaign can be found at http://www.complainforchange.org. Please find the full text of the article here.
Source: Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, UK
