An exploratory study of the experiences of children and young people with an intellectual disability undergoing clinical procedures

Being held still and not being informed about why a procedure was being carried out are some of the upsetting experiences children with a learning disability decribed to Greg Cigan and colleagues in this groundbreaking study. This article is part of a series of extended abstracts of research undertaken by nurses in practice

Clinical procedures are activities such as blood pressure testing, radiological investigations and blood tests performed by healthcare practitioners for diagnosing, monitoring or treating an illness.

Children and young people with an intellectual disability – learning disability is the term used in the UK – are prone to developing physical illnesses including epilepsy and congenital heart disease, and are therefore frequent visitors to healthcare settings for clinical procedures (Short and Calder 2013, Iacono et al 2014).