半岛体育

The learning disability liaison service is a dedicated advice and support service at 半岛体育 Park Hospital designed to help adults access medical care or treatment.

The service covers adults over the age of 18. It is delivered by a team of specialist nurses who work closely with individuals with a learning disability, as well as their families, carers, paid support staff and acute hospital staff.

The team assists hospital staff in meeting the needs of individuals with a learning disability by;

• promoting and facilitating reasonable adjustments
• offering guidance on mental capacity and best interest
• delivering training for staff
• supporting individuals during their hospital stays
• providing additional tailored support as needed 

The goal is to reduce health inequalities for individuals with a learning disability and ensure that people receive compassionate, accessible and effective care.

Emily and Natasha are both employed by Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust and help patients over the age of 18 years old. Emily is the lead nurse for Surrey patients and Natasha is the lead nurse for Berkshire patients. 

A learning disability is a lifelong condition which cannot be cured. There are three core criteria which must be met for the term learning disability to apply:

• Significant impairment of intellectual function. An IQ below 70
• Significant impairment of adaptive and/or social function and their ability to cope with demands on a day-to-day basis
• Normally occurs at birth or shortly after

A learning disability and a learning difficulty are different.

A patient with a learning difficulty diagnosis (autism, dyslexia, ADHD, dementia or any patient presenting in mental health crisis for example) would not be eligible for the services of the liaison nurses, without an associated learning disability diagnosis.

Patients with a learning disability or learning difficulty should ensure that hospital staff are aware of their individual additional needs so that adjustments can be made as needed. This can be done by the patient, their carer or their next of kin.