Primary healthcare teams are the first point of contact for many people with a learning disability. But are the needs of those individuals being met? Jill Jones and Kim Kemp describe a study that explored GPs’ attitudes to, and experience of, working with people with Down syndrome

It is well established that individuals with learning disabilities have more health needs than the general population (Howells 1986, NHS Health Scotland 2004, NHS Quality Improvement Scotland 2006), face significant barriers in terms of accessing health care (Howells 1986, Lennox and Kerr 1997) and that these health needs often remain unmet (Lennox and Kerr 1997, NHS Health Scotland 2004).