Multi-professional training for primary care staff

Learning Disability Health Check Awareness

Session

DES 2008/09

Aims:

To raise awareness of health checks for people with a learning disability.

Objectives:

1. To demonstrate an understanding of and identification of people with a learning disability.

2. To gain an understanding of the health check template in relation to meeting the health needs of people with learning disabilities.

3. To gain an understanding of health actions plans and health facilitation.

4. To explore ways in which to increase the effectiveness of the health check appointments.

The Department of Health defines a Learning Disability as including the Presence of:

• A significantly reduced ability to understand new or complex information, or learn new skills( impaired intelligence), with;

• A reduced ability to cope independently (impaired social functioning);

• Which started before adulthood, with a lasting effect on development.

What is a Learning Disability?

Causes

• Prenatal –chromosome, genetics, toxins

• Perinatal – birth complications, infections

• Post natal – infections or trauma

World Health Organisation(WHO, 1992) ICD-10

• Mild – IQ between 50 and 70

• Moderate IQ – 55- 69

• Severe and Profound Learning Disability

IQ – below - 55

Learning Disability

Mild Learning Disability-

– Able to hold a conversation, – Independent in social care, – Basic or limited reading and writing skills – Able to maintain social relationships and

employment.

• For this group primary care teams will provide much of their health care with little need for intervention from specialist teams

Moderate learning disability -• Enjoy a level of independence requiring

additional support in some aspects of life.

Learning Disability

Severe or profound learning disability-

• Very limited or specialised communication skills

• Additional physical and mobility problems.

• Require a greater level of support in most or all aspects of life including identifying health- related problems.

What a learning disability is NOT

• Problems with reading, writing or numeracy only.

• Emotional difficulties that may sufficiently have disrupted schooling, influencing achievement.

• Conditions like Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (A.D.H.D.) or hyperactive disorder.

• Asperger’s syndrome and some individuals with Autism.

– However you can have a learning difficulty as well as a learning disability.

Defining Learning Disability

• There is no true or false answer – Someone may wrongly present as having a

learning disability.– Some conditions or disabilities may affect or

mask the diagnosis of a learning disability, these include:

Physical disability e.g. cerebral palsy

Mental Health – this can effect adaptive functioning

Sensory disability e.g. hearing difficulties

Challenging behaviour – e.g. ADHD

Epilepsy e.g. drugs impairing intellectual functioning

Personality disorder

Prevalence of Learning Disability

• National Prevalence estimated at 2-3 %

• Severe & profound 210,000– 65,000 children– 120,000 adults of working age– 25,000 older people

• Mild to moderate 25 per 1000 population (1.2 million)

• Per GP practice of 2000 patients – average of 40 pwld

History

How might someone with a learning disability’s history affect their current health?

Health Facilitator

• Health Facilitation means ‘making it easy for someone to have good health’.

• Health Facilitation is part of everyone's role.

• Strategic Health Facilitator, Specialist Health Facilitator, Individual Health Facilitator

Joint working is required between the different levels of health facilitators

Strategic Facilitator

Specialist Facilitator

Individual Facilitator

Primary, secondary &; Learning

Disability Health Professionals;

Parent, friend, key worker

Lead Health Facilitator

Varying levels of support to individual

Health Facilitation Role

• Support person to understand about HAP’s.

• Support person to improve/ maintain good health.

• Help identify and record health targets.• Support person to access health services.• Support person to identify health

education needs.• Support person to review HAP.• Support person to raise concerns.

Health Action Plan

Lists Actions Needed

Identifies support needed

Provides links to a range of services

Educates and informs

Belongs to the person Person Centred

Coordinates Services

Influences services

Accessible

Identifies health needs

Involves Primary Care

Identify Health Facilitator

Check Understanding

Identify Health Needs

Identify actions to Improve/ Maintain health

Record Actions/ Complete health file

Link to other agencies/ services

Review Actions

Attend Training

Develop Accessible plan

Pri

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Your patient has a learning Disability…What can you expect

regarding Health issues?

• More likely…. • Less Likely……

Health Issues -More likely to:

• Die early

• Die from Breathing problems

• Have heart problems

• Be overweight, and eat badly

• Have certain cancers

• Have epilepsy

• Have Autism

• Be mentally ill

Health Issues- More likely to:

• Have dementia

• Be given Psychotropic drugs

• Have a Physical Disability

• Be deaf or blind

• Communication Problems

• Have Thyroid dysfunction

• Have Dental problems

• Be discharged quickly

Health Issues- Less likely to:

• Have a Health Check

• Be screened for cancer

• Use surgical hospital services

• Have sight tested

• Have hearing tested

• Receive pain relief

• Get Health Promotion advice

• Be included in consultations/ patient forums

Special Health Needs of People with Learning Disabilities

• 2.5x more likely to have a physical condition that warrants medical intervention

• lack of early intervention/detection

• Great difficulty & barriers in accessing all aspects of Healthcare

• Health outcomes fall short

Syndromes

• Down’s syndrome-– Hypothyroidism– Visual & hearing impairment– Reoccurring respiratory tract infections– Sleep apnoea– Obesity– Skin disorders– Dementia– Depression– Congenital heart disease– Low blood pressure and higher MCV

• Prader-Willi Syndrome– Obesity– Problem behaviours– Pain threshold– Depressive episodes with psychotic symptoms

• Fragile X Syndrome– Recurrent otitis media– Myopia and ‘lazy eye’– Flat feet, joint laxity– Epilepsy (20% in men)– GORD– ADHD in childhood and adolescence– Autism

Syndromes

• Tuberous Sclerosis-– Epilepsy– Problem behaviours– Skin Lesions– Hypertension– Renal Lesions– Polycystic kidney disease– Pulmonary complications

• Phenylketonuria (PKU)– Weight loss– Poor wound healing or bed sores– Osteoporosis– Hair loss– Depressive episodes– Anxiety– over activity

Syndromes

Reasons for yearly health checks

– Provides an opportunity to ensure health needs are identified and met.

– Provides an opportunity to check & review patients Health Action Plan.

– Provides an opportunity to offer health promotion advice.

– Provides an opportunity to build relationship & desensitise any fears.

Communication

• 80% of people with learning disabilities will have difficulties communicating.

Two wayUnderstanding

ExpressionVariety of methods

Diagnostic Overshadowing

This means when a person's presenting symptoms are put down to their learning disability, rather than seeking another, potentially treatable cause. For example, when a person presents with a new behaviour or existing ones escalate, you should consider:

• Physical problems - pain or discomfort, e.g. from ear infection, toothache, constipation, reflux oesophagitis, deterioration in vision or hearing.

• Psychiatric cause - depression, anxiety, psychosis, dementia.

• Social cause - change in carers, bereavement, abuse.

Disability Rights Act 1995

• Legal requirement not to treat disabled people less favourably.

• Legal requirement to make reasonable adjustments.

• To bring about equality it can be necessary to treat some people differently.

• Reasonable adjustments are often about practices and procedures rather than physical access, and often cost nothing.

Consent

The Mental Capacity Act (2005): 5 Key Principles:

• Every adult has the right to make their own decisions & must be assumed capable of doing so until proved otherwise

• Everyone should be given all the support they need to make their own decisions before conclusions are made that they cannot

Consent

• People should be able to make unwise or eccentric decisions - it is capacity to make decisions, that is the issue

• Any decisions or anything done for or on behalf a person who lacks capacity must be made or done in their best interests

• Anything done for or on behalf of people without capacity should restrict their rights & freedoms as little as possible

The Community Learning Disability Teams include

• Administration & Team Support

• Physiotherapist• Community Nurse• Psychiatrist• Occupational

Therapist

• Psychologist • Speech &

Language Therapist

• Outreach Nurse• Physical Activity

coordinator– Social Worker Team

What do the Teams do?

• Provide health interventions and specialist therapies to support independence.

• Help people with learning disabilities access general health services.

• Share expertise including training, advice and practical support to people with learning disabilities, their families, carers and other agencies.

What do the Teams do?

• Support people with learning disabilities to stay healthy and safe, for example, health promotion.

• Support the communication needs of people with learning disabilities and help other health services to communicate effectively.

• Develop new ways of working with others to deliver better services for people with learning disabilities.

FredMild learning disability

Communicates wellLikes to please peopleDoesn’t like busy areas

Gets anxious around strangers

– Diarrhoea, constipation, bleeding loss of appetite nausea, vomiting

– Abdominal examination – obese– Rectal examination – non compliant– Stool test occult blood – positive– Treated for haemorrhoids– Referral to hospital – letter received – illiterate DNA’ed– Letter to GP – not followed up– Weight loss –vomiting– Re-referred to GP– Urgent hospital referral – seen in 2 weeks

RIP1951 - 2004

How could we have supported Fred better?

What systems could we put in place to prevent this happening

again?

Fred

– Has Health Facilitator who knows where to get help– Has regular health check – Has longer appointments– Waits in side room at practice– Invite has a picture of doctor he is going to sees– Generally sees the same doctor/nurse– Has a Health Action Plan supported by GP– Had Health education – Has accessible info about what to eat– Supported to Health Appointments– Had help to understand what happens at appointments– Keeps records

1951 – present date

Practice Guide: Preparation for Health Checks

Identify a clinical lead for Learning Disabilities

Verify register using LA list

Identify which patients are priorities for health checks.

Ensure standardised e-template is available for clinical systemwith agreed Read Codes

GP, Practice Nurse and Practice Manager/ Senior Receptionist to attend multi-professional education session.

Ensure adequate appointment time has been allocated

Obtain patient consent and consider risk and ‘best interests’ if consent not given

Carry out health check. Capture details and outcomes of health check on e-template

Invite patient for a health check (use appropriate method) and check this invitation has been received

Draw up an agreed Health Action Plan in an appropriate format or add to current HAP or Health file (with actions, timeframes

and responsibilities). Integrate this into patient’s medical record

Continue liaison with family and CommunityLearning Disability Team staff as appropriate

Review practice procedure for health checks Attend any new or refresher training as appropriate

Follow up any specific actions(referrals to other services, management of co-morbidities etc)

Ensure patient review and recall system is in place

Agree any follow up appointment or annual review date