Physicians say they need more training to help them treat people with intellectual disabilities

By Helen Henderson, in the Toronto Star:

Many people with disabilities do not feel safe in hospitals because they say health-care workers haven’t received adequate training on how to approach people with physical or intellectual differences.

“Hospitals are basically killing or nearly killing us with neglect and ignorance,” says Sandra Carpenter, acting executive director of the Center for Independent Living in Toronto. The center has been collecting stories from its members, aiming to use first-hand accounts as a lever for better education, communication and accountability throughout the system.

… A study in the latest edition of Canadian Family Physician says medical students want more training to help them treat people with intellectual disabilities.

Researchers at Queen’s University and the University of Toronto surveyed 196 medical students. Among findings:

• 88 per cent believe their future practice is likely to include patients with intellectual disabilities.

• 93 per cent feel training in intellectual disabilities should be improved.

• 91 per cent feel training in intellectual disabilities is good preparation for work with other patients, including children, those with brain injuries or dementia, and those who do not speak the same language as the doctor.

The results echo findings from international studies, says lead researcher Philip Burge, assistant professor of psychiatry at Queen’s. So Canada is by no means alone in its neglect.

See also: Med students want more training

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 20th, 2008 at 5:23 am and is filed under NOT2BEMISSED, health aides/direct support workers, health care, intellectual/developmental disabilities, international, medicine, research news. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.