Improving the Experience of Acute Hospital Care for People with a Learning Disability within Hywel Dda University Health Board

The aim of the project was to work with people with learning disabilities to develop and co-deliver meaningful facilitated learning sessions for one ward in a district general hospital. By providing the learning sessions, it was hoped to improve the hospital experience and health outcomes for people with a learning disability. To achieve this the project team gathered feedback from people with a learning disability, families, carers and staff using both questionnaires and focus groups and used this information to develop the learning sessions.

The learning sessions covered the topics outlined in the picture below

Staff were asked to evaluate the project, which was filmed with their consent (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0xuRzs3nSg). The ward sister felt the patients first project had changed the culture on the ward and improved staff’s ability to respond to the needs of individuals who have a learning disability. Professional links have also been established and ward staff feel confident in knowing who to approach for specialist input.

See also the blog by Angie Edwards ‘How it felt to be invoved in an innovation in practice‘.

This project was supported by the Foundation of Nursing Studies Patients First Programme in partnership with the Burdett Trust for Nursing.