People with disabilities have the right to good health too | Fiona Ritchie

Year-long campaign will focus on disability and health inequalities, challenging providers to improve services

Should being in good health look different for someone who is deaf? How do you know if a person with autism is unwell if they cannot tell you? These are among the questions all social care professionals – from care managers to nurses – should be asking to tackle the significant health inequalities experienced by people with disabilities.

For the 13.3 million people in the UK who live with a disability, being as healthy as possible should be a given, but too often their medical needs are neglected or ignored. Barriers to accessing services, a lack of knowledge and skills among staff, and a failure to prevent problems are among the causes highlighted by the World Health Organisation.

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Related: Over-medication of people with learning disabilities infringes human rights

Continue reading... November 27, 2017 at 02:44PM