Learning Disability Nurses/People with a Learning Disability

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Learning Disability Nurses/People with a Learning
Disability

• Lets work together.

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• Examine the role of the Learning Disability
  Nurses
• Consider the needs of the service users we might
  be assisting
• Discuss areas of Collaboration and good practice.

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Nigel

• Nigel is 19. He has Downs Syndrome and a
  severe/moderate learning disability. He has some
  behaviours that challenge

He lives in a supported living environment but
has Learning Disability Nursing support.
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The Issues for Nigel

• Nigel has glue ear
• Impacted ear wax
• Recurrent ear infections
• Conductive hearing loss
• Refuses to wear hearing aids or interact with
  audiologist
• Has some words, but wants to please
• Cannot recognise the change in his
• own hearing.
• Will exhibit behavioural need.. Headbanging
• Learned behaviour

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• Self Injurious behaviour.. Ear poking
• Diagnostic overshadowing
• Underachieving
• Professionals, family and carers are challenged
  by him
• What does he understand?
• What can he hear?
• Psychological impact of being different
• Can Nigel see the benefit of aids???

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The role of the learning Disability Nurse

• Holistic nursing assessment what is Nigel about?
  What is important to him, what does he
  understand? How is he able to communicate? Refer
  onto other agencies. How do his behavioural needs
  benefit him? How does Nigels diagnosis impact on
  his hearing?
• Work with carers.. Fill gaps in their knowledge
• Working with families around bereavement and
  dynamics
• Design care plans for Nigel and his staff to
  follow.

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• Use counselling and/or interpersonal skills to
  work out with Nigel what might be the problem in
  being an hearing aid wearer and the benefits of
  support.
• Provide specific intervention around his health,
  psychological and behavioural needs.
• Work with the person and reduce diagnostic
  overshadowing

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Antecedents Behaviour Consequences
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• Not experts on hearing needs
• Cannot provide a diagnosis of hearing need
• Thrive on working together!!!

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We need

• A clear diagnosis of hearing need (A)
• Discussion about where learning disability and
  hearing needs overlap (LD/A)
• Analysis of where the problem lies. Force field
  analysis. (LD)
• Plan of action. Health action plan. Who will do
  what (LD/A)

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Audiologist Hearing assessment and diagnosis Treatment plan Working with child and family to support Follow up Learning Disability Nurse Assistance with diagnosis, reiterating issues Working with child and family to support, from a specialist LD perspective Behavioural plan to support treatment plan
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Reference Good practice in learning disability
nursing

• Document type
• Guidance
• Author
• Department of Health
• Published date
• 5 December 2007
• Primary audience
• Health and social care professionals, Directors,
  Human resources and training
• This document provides good practice guidance to
  support learning disability nursing to make a
  major contribution to the health and well-being
  of people with a learning disability in the
  future.
• Download Good practice in learning disability
  nursing (PDF, 263K)