Learning disabilities (health and wellbeing needs in South Tyneside)

A learning disability happens when a person's brain development is affected, either before they are born, during their birth or in early childhood.

Several factors can affect brain development, including: 

• the mother becoming ill in pregnancy 
• problems during the birth that stop enough oxygen getting to the brain
• the unborn baby developing certain genes
• the parents passing certain genes to the unborn baby that make having a learning disability more likely (known as inherited learning disability) 
• illness, such as meningitis, or injury in early childhood

Sometimes there is no known cause for a learning disability.

People with autism may also have learning disabilities, and around 30% of people with epilepsy have a learning disability.

Valuing People (2001) defined a learning disability

• a significantly reduced ability to understand new or complex information, to learn new skills (impaired intelligence (impaired intelligence, often defined as an IQ level of 70 or less), with;
• a reduced ability to cope independently (impaired social functioning); which started before adulthood, with a lasting effect on development.

Learning Disabilities is a diagnosis, but it is not a disease, nor is it a physical or mental illness. There are no official statistics reporting the number of adults in the UK with Learning Disabilities, and establishing a precise figure is not easy due to the social construct of the condition and its wide spectrum.

However estimates suggest that approximately 2% of the UK adult population have a Learning Disabilities. In South Tyneside it is estimated that there are around 891 adults with a Learning Disabilities. The number of adults with a Learning Disability in South Tyneside is increasing and the nature of need is changing.

It is anticipated that the population of those 18 - 64 with a Learning Disabilities will increase by 4% The projections are in line with projected increases in the general adult population. The primary driver is an increase in life expectancy.

Males are more likely than females to have either a mild Learning Disability or a severe Learning Disabilities (1.2 males: 1 female and 1.6 males: 1 female respectively), due to some conditions associated with a Learning Disabilities having a sex-linked genetic cause (Emerson et al 2001). The ratio decreases with age as women typically live longer.

People with Learning Disabilities have differing needs and are one of the most vulnerable groups in society, experiencing health inequalities, social exclusion and stigmatisation. In general, adults with Learning Disabilities have greater and more complex health needs than those without a learning disability and often these needs are not identified or treated.

Life expectancy of this group is shorter than the general population, though this has increased recently. In addition a number of national reports have highlighted that adults with Learning Disabilities often experience barriers to accessing healthcare services and poor levels of care. Adults with Learning Disabilities are more likely to die from a preventable cause than adults in the general population.