Booklets for patients with learning disabilities
Three new booklets to help people with learning disabilities make informed decisions about their medicines were launched this week by Medicines Partnership and the Norah Fry Research Centre.
“My medication”, “All my medications”, and “How
to make choices about medication” are booklets designed to help
patients record information about what medicines are being taken, why
they are being taken and any precautions necessary.
An earlier research project carried out by the Norah Fry Research Centre
found that people with learning disabilities who were taking psychotropic
medicines did not think they had enough choice about whether they took
their medicine or not.
The research found that although the majority of these patients received
most of the information about their medicine from their carer, the carers
were generally not trained in issues such as why the medicine is needed
or what the adverse effects might be.
Jackie Rodgers, senior research fellow at the Norah Fry Research Centre,
commented: “If people with learning difficulties and their families
or carers are not in full possession of the information about medication,
psychotropic or otherwise, it is questionable whether they can be said
to be giving informed consent to treatment.”
The booklets, designed for use by patients, their carers and health professionals,
are available from the Medicines Partnership website
Disability toolkit A
toolkit to help assess patients who may need support with their
medicines in accordance with the
Disability Discrimination Act has been launched by NHS Primary
Care Contracting, formerly part of the National Primary and Care
Trust
development programme. The toolkit is designed to help pharmacists
and primary care trusts assess and help people who may have problems
taking their medicines or complying with treatment because of a
disability. It can be downloaded here
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