Learning Disability Nurses Research Articles

A chance to network

Dear Editor I am writing to bring readers up-to-date with developments for the 23rd Annual, two-day conference – 'Vision into Practice' that is being hosted by the National Network for Learning Disability Nurses (NNLDN) on July 4-5 at Napier University, Edinburgh.

An education programme for social care staff: improving the health of people who have a learning disability and epilepsy

SummaryThis article will describe and examine course feedback from a local training initiative, which contributes to the improvements in the health status of people with a learning disability, who have epilepsy. The aim is to analyse how an education programme that focused on epilepsy and its management, together with a borough wide epilepsy protocol developed the skills of the local workforce. This education programme provided a framework for social care staff, enabling them to work both safely and effectively in their support of individuals with learning disabilities that have epilepsy. Learning disability nurses led this training initiative, in response to the health needs of people with learning disabilities. Success was achieved through the collaborative working across a number of agencies and through consultation with family carers and people with learning disabilities. For the purpose of this article the term social care staff refers to people employed within the community residential/day services both in statutory and nonstatutory agencies.

From the director’s chair

Seeing into the future Last September, the Nurse Directors and Leads Forum held its autumn conference in Manchester. Titled ‘Looking to the Future’, the event aimed to uncover what current health policy might mean for mental health and learning disability nursing. To this end, we invited a top team of Department of Health mediums to help us read the runes – Sarah Mullally, Louis Appleby and Sue Culling.

Ethics support for learning disability nurses

Ethics support for learning disability nurses

Three of a kind

Michael Brown gives three examples of how learning disability nurses are using their skills and knowledge to transform practice

It’s elementary, Dr McClimens

Dear EditorI must take issue with what Dr Alex McClimens wrote in his letter ‘Marx my words’ (LDP 7, 7, 10) on three counts: his labelling of the social model of disability, his intimation that learning disability nurses are standing still while they wait ‘for the great leap forward’ and his denigrating assertion that the client group of learning disability nurses - people with learning difficulties are available be ‘stolen’ by others.

Protecting people with learning disabilities from abuse: a key role for learning disability nurses

Learning disability nurses are in a prime position to help protect clients from abuse. But current training programmes are not preparing nurses adequately to fulfill this role. This article argues that a shift in organisational culture is required in order to ensure new knowledge is properly integrated with nurses' experience and training needs.

The future looks bright, learning disability nurses in Wales told

The future looks bright, learning disability nurses in Wales told

Ethical Dilemmas in Community Learning Disabilities Nursing

Community learning disability nurses (CLDNs) sometimes face ethical dilemmas arising from choices made by people with learning disabilities. This article reports on the results of a postal questionnaire that asked a sample of CLDNs in England and Wales about support available to them to assist in resolving these dilemmas. They were also asked about their knowledge and use of best interests guidelines. Differences were reported in the availability of support, such as policies and procedures, training, and ethical committees, to help in the areas of relationships and lifestyle, finance, and health care. Additional support was identified by respondents, and the most helpful to CLDNs are characterized by the provision of reflective opportunity and the ability to discuss issues with colleagues and other professionals. This support included talking to colleagues, reflective practice, multidisciplinary working, clinical supervision, access to the evidence base, and training.

Learning disability nursing: a complex picture

This paper is a further report from some research that was commissioned from the now defunct English National Board for Nursing, Midwidery and Health Visiting. The original research was to inform educational programmes for learning disability nursing and this paper reflects on lessons for educationalists, service commissioners, policy makers and learning disability nurses themselves.

Mental health and learning disabilities.

The Mental Health and Learning Disability Nurse Directors' and Leads' National Forum has launched a new website. The forum has a membership of 50 NHS organisations and its main aim is to provide a platform to support members to share ideas, policies and initiatives. Its website can be found at www.mentalhealthforum.org.uk.

Learning disability nursing: a multi‐method study of education and practice

AbstractThis article reports on multi‐agency and multi‐disciplinary education and practice in the area of learning disability nursing in England. It draws on evidence from a national survey, commissioned by the English National Board for Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting (ENB), and an analysis of documents related to the professional education of these nurses, together with observation of their practice. Messages for educationalists, service commissioners, policy makers and learning disability nurses are identified from this study of a professional group that has a long tradition of working with other professionals and in a multi‐agency context.

Universal precautions: a survey of community nurses' experience and practice.

Universal precautions are a set of guidelines which aim to protect health care workers from blood-borne infections. Community nurses often have to deliver care to people in less than ideal home conditions, their ability to comply with all universal precautions may therefore be compromised. This paper presents the findings of a questionnaire survey which aimed to explore community nurses' experience and practices of using universal precautions. A questionnaire survey was used for this study. All community learning disability nurses, community mental health nurses and generic community nurses from one Welsh Health Authority were surveyed (n = 543) with a response rate of 70%. The majority of community nurses reported compliance with universal precautions, although a small number of nurses stated that they re-sheathed needles, inappropriately stored sharps containers, inadequately wore gloves and experienced difficulties in handwashing. Community nurses work in a unique and unpredictable environment, which may result in nurses being unable to comply with existing universal precautions guidelines. The production of new infection control guidelines for the community by the National Institute of Clinical Excellence in June 2003, has addressed some of the difficulties faced by community nurses.

Leading interagency collaboration

Leading interagency collaboration

NANDA and NIC: Mediators to Describe Irish Intellectual Disability Nursing

PURPOSETo identify the foci of interest specific to nursing interventions within residential, intellectual disability nursing through the use of the terms and meanings presented in NANDA and NIC.METHODSData were collected using a Delphi approach involving a purposive sample of 8 individuals with relevant expertise, followed up by the conduct of three focus groups held with a total sample of 17 intellectual disability nurses working in three Irish service settings: traditional residential, community residential, and nurse education. Data were examined for contextual meaning as well as consensus of perceptions.FINDINGSMany potential interventions and diagnoses were identified for the field of residential learning disability nursing. Interventions that elicited a >50% consensus among participants across groups were examined for contextual meaning, based on the taped and noted responses, and potentially related NIC interventional labels were then applied. These led, through a reverse NIC‐NANDA linkage exercise, to the identification of 8 potentially related interventions. The contextual aspect directed the analysis process to identify the nursing diagnoses associated with the interventions to be used, and 21 resultant diagnoses were identified.DISCUSSIONFurther analysis and study are needed to verify the relevance of these diagnoses and interventions to residential learning disability. A quick comparison of the results with those of studies carried out in other countries demonstrates that certain diagnoses have been identified by one or more authors in their studies.CONCLUSIONSThis study identified a number of foci that have achieved various levels of consensus among the study participants. The ongoing study plan will further examine nurses' and managers' perceptions while also looking at these within the context of current service philosophy.

Nurses' role in the developments in learning disability care

This article looks at the changes in the attitude of society towards people with a learning disability over the last 20 years. Their status in the world as well as their right to be recognized as individuals will be discussed. Nurses have had to move away from the medical and dependence model of care and adjust their practice and behaviour to practice in a more relaxed and domestic style, in which risk-taking, decision-making, choice and opportunity for the clients are key features of the service. This article will highlight the role that learning disability nurses have played in these changes and the adjustments that they have had to make to their clinical practice. Within the new culture of independence and rights for people with a disability, it emphasizes the need for nurses to ensure that they address their own accountability and responsibility. Strategies that have been developed to address social discrimination and exclusion will also be explored.

Care mapping will improve standards

Care mapping could high-light areas of staff weak-ness and help improve standards of person-centred care. That was the message delivered by Michelle Persaud and Sue Jaycock, two learning disability nurses who have spent three years studying how the lessons learned from mapping patients with dementia could be translated for the learning disability field.

Learning from the Past

This article explores learning disability nursing by examining evidence for emotional labour from the past. As such it offers insights into both methodological and political issues connected to emotional labour in nursing and explores issues within learning disability nursing. In particular it addresses the development of learning disability nursing and the way in which its role within institutions was defined in terms of emotional labour. Specific material from textbooks, minutes of curricular development meetings and GNC inspectors' reports are examined. It is suggested that emotional labour provides a shared experience between different branches of nursing as well as different periods of time. Such shared experience is particularly helpful to learning disability nurses in their position on the margins of the nursing profession. It is further suggested that emotional labour as a concept could be used to help develop understanding of work with people with learning disabilities.

Learning Disability Nursing

It is frequently asserted that the views of patients or service users should inform the structure and delivery of health and social care services. In the UK, patient participation, the expertise of service users and user involvement in the design and outcomes of research have been repeatedly emphasized as producing services which are more responsive, better coordinated and less stigmatizing. The NHS has highlighted the importance of involving service users in education and training. This article reports on user and carer views about learning disability nursing. Data were collected as part of a larger project considering the changing roles and education of learning disability nurses in England. The article concludes with a series of challenges for future educational and service development.

Learning Disability Nursing, Diet and Eating in Children, Focus Groups and Self-Advocacy

Learning Disability Nursing, Diet and Eating in Children, Focus Groups and Self-Advocacy