People with disabilities are not equal from the start

doi:10.1136/bmj.b1497

Published 14 April 2009, doi:10.1136/bmj.b1497
Cite this as: BMJ 2009;338:b1497

Letters

Care in learning disabilities

People with disabilities are not equal from the start

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

The ombudsman’s report on complaints about the care ofsix people with learning disabilities who died while in hospital¹says that their treatment was "a shocking indictment of serviceswhich profess to value individuals and to personalise servicesaccording to individual need." It also says that they were treated"less favourably than others, resulting in prolonged sufferingand inappropriate care." Shocking, indeed.

Recently, the BMJ published an editorial and research papersabout screening for Down’s syndrome.² ³ ⁴ They discussvarious methods of screening pregnant women and describe thedifficulties in deciding whom should be offered what sort ofscreening and how to make use of the results.

The introduction to a recent strategy document signed by sixsecretaries of state begins: "People with learning disabilitiesare entitled to the same aspirations and life chances as otherpeople."⁵ But how can people with learning disabilities getthe same life chances as other . . . [Full text of this article]

Joyce M Carter, consultant in public health medicine¹

¹ Liverpool L1 4AZ

joyce.carter@liverpoolpct.nhs.uk

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