Communication: one test that can keep people with mild learning disabilities engaged

TROG, a test of language skills, aids healthcare staff's communication with people who have a mild learning disability, helping to reduce confusion

If all healthcare staff understood how language can be a barrier to care, service users might not feel discriminated against and experience minority stress.

In people with a mild learning disability, language often acts as a barrier to getting the right service. Many healthcare professionals misinterpret language, often leaning towards a negative stereotype which becomes an obstacle. There is also evidence that healthcare staff communicate in a way that confuses people with mild learning disabilities.

When a breakdown in communication happens, the individual may have a sense of not being cared for. But could a test for the reception of grammar (TROG) be