Learning disabilities: what Lord Darzi says should change
Posted 26 September 2024 - 11:00
Lord Darzi's report on the NHS in England highlights the decline in numbers of learning disability nurses as well as healthcare and life expectancy inequalities
What are the key points about the the care of people with learning disabilities in the investigation of the NHS in England by Lord Darzi?
The report highlights that the numbers of learning disability nurses has dropped from 44%, on average, since 2010-11. The east of England has seen the highest drop at 55% and London the lowest at 13%.
Given that people with learning disabilities die, on average, earlier than those without – Mencap says only four in ten will live to see their 65th birthday – this, Lord Darzi says, ‘deserves further investigation’.
Variations in learning disability care with many not getting vital health checks
His report also points out that people with learning disabilities are twice as likely to die from diseases that can be prevented and four times as likely to die from treatable causes like cancer or respiratory illness.
It goes on to talk about variations in care and Mencap’s evidence that three quarters of people are not on GP learning disability registers so are not getting the vital health checks they should.
The 2,000 people with learning disabilities detained in mental health settings is highlighted with Mencap’s estimating that NHS plans to reduce inpatient numbers by 50% will not be reached until 2030 or later. Furthermore, more than one third of single rooms in these setting do not have en suite bathrooms.
Of this Lord Darzi comments: ‘Many patients stay in these facilities for months at a time, and some for many years. If the measure of a society’s humanity is how it treats its most vulnerable, then we are falling far short.’
There is also acknowledgement of long waiting lists for autism and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder assessments.
The NHS is in ‘serious trouble’
Overall, Lord Darzi concludes that the nation’s health has deteriorated, and the NHS is in ‘serious trouble’.
Of course, many of you don’t work in England or the NHS at all, but what happens elsewhere is inevitably affected by it.
