People with Learning Disabilities experience a range of health inequalities including those related to both physical and mental health.
NES Learning Disabilities team will continue to review and update this page as required.
Some of the below links and resources will direct you to information sources that are external to NES. These have not been created by NES and have been included for your information only. The inclusion of these sources is not as a recommendation or an endorsement of the associated content.
You will need to sign in to Turas Learn to access both of these resources. If you don't have an account click here to register. It's free and anyone can sign up using their email address.
NES Module- This learning byte describes the health needs of people with learning disabilities and how to improve access to healthcare screening or treatment using reasonable adjustments and trauma informed approaches.
NES Module- This module will support staff in acute or other hospital settings to understand, identify and respond to the communication and physical health care needs of people with learning disabilities.
Your Posture Matters is our NHS Education for Scotland page on postural care and the protection of body shape. There are an exceptionally high number of people who have a learning disability who also have health needs around maintaining and protecting body shape.
Report: Delayed Discharge and Complex Care
The report from the working group into Delayed Discharge and Complex Care which makes recommendations of actions to be taken at national and local levels to reduce the number of delayed discharges and out-of-area placements for people with learning disabilities and complex care needs.
Coming Home Implementation: report from the Working Group on Complex Care and Delayed Discharge (Link)
The Coming Home report (2018) recommended building a workforce competent in PBS as a critical step to improve support services to individuals with learning disabilities, and PBS training is a key element in achieving this.
People with Learning Disabilities experience with inequalities in relation to Mental Health.
Additional resources can be found on Psychological Care and Trauma section.
This review of evidence reports on 'Mental ill health and behaviours that challenge in adults with learning/intellectual disabilities' which arose from work commissioned by the Scottish Government and undertaken by the Scottish Learning Disabilities Observatory.