Isle of Wight
Community Learning Disability Team
Sandown Civic Centre Building
Barrack Block
The Broadway
Sandown
Isle of Wight
PO36 9EA
The team provides health care to adults with learning disabilities (LD), and works closely with social care colleagues.
If a referral is sent to the team, one or more of the following professionals may become involved with a person’s care:
• Community Learning Disability Nursing
• Hospital LD Liaison Nurse
• Nurse Associates
• Physiotherapy
• Occupational Therapy (current vacancy)
• Psychiatry
• Psychology
• Speech and Language therapy (provided by mainstream adult team).
What we do:
- A facilitative model of support
- Improving access to mainstream services
- Maintaining and enhancing the health and wellbeing of people
- Reducing health inequalities experienced
- Providing specialist help, advice and clinical support to people
- Working with individuals, families and carers.
When the Learning Disability team receives a referral it will be screened and allocated to the most appropriate team members. The work of the team falls into the following main areas:
Prevention:
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Support for people with learning disabilities to lead healthy lifestyles
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Screening and early intervention designed to prevent the need for unplanned health or other services (including hospital admissions)
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Provide support and advice for families, statutory and third sector organisations on supporting an individual with learning disabilities
Assessments and Interventions:
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Person-centred assessments
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Mental health and psychological assessments and interventions
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Specialist clinical assessments
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Assessment and interventions for people with behaviours that challenge
Supporting transition from paediatric to adult learning disability services
Working with experts by experience to improve the services offered.
Contact the team directly on 01983 534243
Office hours -
Monday to Friday: 9am to 4.30pm (closed on bank holidays)
If you need support outside of these hours then please call NHS 111.
Email us at iownt.DisabilitiesAdmin.Learning@nhs.net
You can make a referral to the team by:
- Using the Community Learning Disability Referral form.
- Self referral by service users
- Referrals from GPs or other health professionals, Local Authority, or from families and carers preferably using the Referral form above and via email into the Learning Disabilities mailbox:iownt.DisabilitiesAdmin.Learning@nhs.net
If it is not clear that the person being referred will meet our criteria, then we suggest completing our screening tool and send that with the referral to save time in this having to then be sent out for completion.
About the service
Learning disability liaison nurses at St Mary's hospital on the Isle of Wight can provide support and guidance to staff and patients. The service can:
- give advice, support and training to staff about caring for people with a learning disability
- help with planning admissions including day surgery and discharge meetings
- link with specialist learning disability services, families, carers, GPs and other organisations.
What we do
The team support people with a learning disability who are coming into hospital and ensure they are not discriminated against due to their disability.
They are also here to improve services for patients with a learning disability so they find it easier to access our hospital, to raise awareness about the needs of people with a learning disability and to ensure we are implementing reasonable adjustments.
This includes supporting with any reasonable adjustments, asking for a patient’s 'This is Me' booklet or offering double appointment slots and offering first or last appointments of the day to minimise the distress of waiting in a busy noisy environment.
The LD Liaison team can also support acute wards and people with a learning disability by:
- Encouraging wards to inform the LD Liaison Team of any appointments or admissions so that they can provide support if required.
- Supporting wards to be aware of jargon and demonstrating appropriate communication – use simple language and using easy read leaflets.
- Check capacity and apply for an independent mental capacity advocate if indicated.
- Many people with a learning disability live in supported living accommodation – not in residential or nursing care. This means they live in their own flats with a care package which may take time to get restarted. It is very important to plan discharge carefully – a meeting may be required if there are changes in the patient’s needs.
How to contact the liaison team?
If you see us around the hospital please feel free to ask us for any advice.
The service operates Monday-Friday, 8.00am - 4.00pm.
To refer to the LD Liaison team please contact:
Phone
St Marys 01983 822099 ext. 5478 or call 07795 121674.
Social Media X
Follow us on X (Twitter) for up to date developments on health and learning disabilities
@LDLiaisonTeamIW (For news and information only)
We have learning disability liaison nurses at our hospital who can:
- give advice, support and training to staff about caring for people with a learning disability
- help with planning admissions including day surgery and discharge meetings
- link with specialist learning disability services, families, carers, GPs and other organisations.
Going into hospital
The Isle of Wight NHS Trust is in the process of developing a video ‘Going into hospital'. The video gives information to patients with a learning disability about what to expect when you get to hospital, the hospital staff and what you should bring with you to hospital.
What questions should I ask?
When you are going to the doctor or into hospital, it is often useful to have a list of questions that you would like to ask.
Visit this website to find an easy-read guide to the right questions to ask.
Preparing to go into hospital
NHS Choices have made a short film to help people who are preparing to go into hospital. A nurse from Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust describes what to pack if you're going into hospital, and what facilities inpatients and their visitors can expect. Watch the film.
Easy read:
Video: Learning Disabilities Liaison Team - Day Surgery Unit (youtube.com)
Video: Sepsis information for People with a Learning Disability (youtube.com)
Video: Health Is Everybody's Responsibility (youtube.com)
If a person has a learning disability and are aged 14 or over, they are entitled to a free annual health check by their doctor. An annual health check will help them stay well by talking about their health and finding any problems early, so they get the right care.
If you have a learning disability and are concerned about anything regarding your hospital stay please contact:
The service operates Monday-Friday, 8.00am - 4.00pm.
To refer to the LD Liaison team please contact:
Phone
St Marys 01983 822099 ext. 5478 or call 07795 121674.
Social Media X
Follow us on X for up to date developments on health and learning disabilities
@LDLiaisonTeamIW (for news and information only)
Our Mission
We will provide an integrated interface, all hours of the day, to ensure that all people in St Mary’s Hospital with mental health or learning disability needs receive timely, person centred assessments, adjustments and advice.
Who is Mental Health & Learning Disabilities Liaison (MH&LD Liaison)?
We are a team of trained mental health and learning disability practitioners and assistants that offer a wide range of knowledge, skills and advice to support people of all ages with MH&LD when in A&E, inpatients on the wards and the acute hospital site.
Description of Service
We are developing a 24/7 all age Integrated MH&LD Liaison Service supporting people attending St Mary’s Hospital.
The MH&LD Liaison Service specialises in the interface between the acute hospital services and MH&LD Services.
We ensure timely MH&LD need assessments are undertaken; developing care plans and adjustments with the person, their supporters and their care teams.
The team aims to reduce the length of stay for people with MH&LD needs, reduce frequent attendances and to proactively bridge the gap between MH&LD and physical health.
We offer support to people being cared for in St Mary’s Hospital who may be experiencing:
- Suicidal thoughts / ideation
- Self-harm
- Post Traumatic Stress Disorder
- Alcohol and drug related issues with our Inclusion Nurse, Kerry
- Health Anxiety
- General Anxiety (GAD)
- Ongoing low mood and thoughts
- Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD)
- Bereavement
- Eating Disorders
- Dementia
- Learning disabilities