Developing a service improvement initiative for people with learning disabilities in hospice settings
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Developing a service improvement initiative for people with learning disabilities in hospice settings

Fiona Springall @Fionaspringall Learning disability nurse, Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital, Beccles, Suffolk, England

People with learning disabilities are often marginalised in healthcare, including in hospice settings, and as a result may not receive effective end of life care. Research in hospice settings has identified that many staff lack confidence, skills and knowledge in caring for people with learning disabilities, which can have a negative effect on the care these individuals receive. To address these issues, the author has proposed a service improvement initiative, which she developed as part of her learning disability nursing degree programme. This proposed initiative aimed to enhance end of life care for people with learning disabilities through the implementation of a community learning disability link nurse in the hospice setting.

Nursing Standard. 32, 30, 49-54. doi: 10.7748/ns.2018.e11014

Correspondence

fiona.springall@outlook.com

Peer review

This article has been subject to external double-blind peer review and checked for plagiarism using automated software

Conflict of interest

None declared

Received: 14 September 2017

Accepted: 16 January 2018

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