Publication: Preventing people with a learning disability from dying too young, Nuffield Trust
What are the main findings?
> There is a 20-year age gap in median age at death between people with a learning disability and people without.
> Twice as many young people who have a learning disability are obese.
> 35 of individuals with a learning disability who died with cancer had their cancer identified at an emergency presentation at hospital.
> Those with a learning disability are less likely to be referred for talking therapies, despite having a higher prevalence of mental health problems.
> Only around 26% of people with a learning disability are on the learning disability register, preventing people from accessing annual health checks and vaccinations.
> Recommendations include a national review of the quality of annual health checks, and integrated care boards to review the number of people on GP registers using local data.
EXPERT THOUGHT
Jessica Morris, Nuffield Trust Fellow said: ‘We will not begin to improve access to services for people with a learning disability unless access to much-needed preventive health services becomes less disjointed and adjustments are made… Ultimately, people with a learning disability need access to timely and effective health care.
Image | Unsplash
