Patients with learning disabilities missing out on health checks

[Northerner]

Patients in England with learning disabilities are missing out on vital health checks, NHS data shows.

These include cancer screening, blood pressure checks and mental health assessments.

Only about half of women with learning disabilities in England received breast cancer screening last year, compared with about 70% of eligible women overall.

NHS England said the number having an annual health check was on the rise.

Fewer than half of patients received the recommended annual health check.

This meant they were not accessing support including checks for epilepsy and chronic conditions such as asthma.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39528383

 

[Amigo]

Patients in England with learning disabilities are missing out on vital health checks, NHS data shows.

These include cancer screening, blood pressure checks and mental health assessments.

Only about half of women with learning disabilities in England received breast cancer screening last year, compared with about 70% of eligible women overall.

NHS England said the number having an annual health check was on the rise.

Fewer than half of patients received the recommended annual health check.

This meant they were not accessing support including checks for epilepsy and chronic conditions such as asthma.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-39528383

I could write a book on this northerner. Throw into the mix almost non existent dental services for people with learning disabilities and it's no wonder the earlier mortality rate is so much greater (even taking into account other factors). If my son gets a really bad tooth ache, it can take up to 4 months to resolve it and has done so due to initial difficulty getting an appointment with the one appointed specialist dentist and then awaiting a slot for general anaesthesia.
I find I have to oversee and drive my son's health needs at every turn and there's no regular monitoring of any kind. It's shocking!

 

[mikeyB]

Yes, this is the hidden and unrepresented group who have no voice of protest. It is to the shame of our society that this can happen in the 21st century. The late Victorians did it better, though the medicine was obviously cruder, because they felt a civic responsibility. It wasn't ideal, by any standard, but it was born out of that responsibility. That responsibility for society to look after the disadvantaged in society has totally disappeared.