Staff perceptions of the quality of life of individuals with an intellectual disability who transition from a residential campus to community living in Ireland: An exploratory study

Abstract

Background This study explores the quality of life (QoL) of individuals with a severe intellectual disability (ID) who had recently moved from an institutional setting (i.e., “residential campus”) to independent housing in the community (i.e., “community living”) and whether aspects of their QoL were perceived to have changed over the course of this move.Method A qualitative approach was adopted by interviewing the key workers of 8 individuals with an ID (M age = 37.38, range: 26–44, male n = 6, female n = 2). An interview tool focusing on aspects of QoL was utilised and the interviews were analysed using thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006).Results Ten themes emerged from the analysis that provided insight into the experience of transitioning to community living.Conclusions The emotional wellbeing, health, privacy, freedom, and material wellbeing of all the individuals were perceived to have improved, as well as independence, choice, and social opportunities for many.