Occupational Therapists

What Forms of Interventions Do Occupational Therapists Adopts To Promote Social Inclusion for People with Mental Health Problems



Abstract

The ill health and early deaths of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities are of increasing concern around the world. People with serious mental health problems are more likely to develop cardiovascular disease, diabetes and respiratory disease , and and twice as likely to die early as the general population . The number of health problems among people with learning disabilities has been estimated to be 2.5 times greater than among other people , with early death rates particularly high for people with moderate or severe impairments. Some of the excess morbidity and mortality is preventable (Linda et al., 2005). Disabled people, including people with mental health problems or learning disabilities, are at high risk of living in poverty and the association between social deprivation and poor health is well established and : as in the case of health inequalities generally, tackling deprivation offers one opportunity to improve health. However, it is notable that the health inequalities experienced by disabled people have seldom been included in broader health inequalities programmes. Although the most recent programme to tackle health inequalities in England included a reference to the needs of people with learning disabilities , this only referred back to the learning disability White Paper, Valuing People, rather than integrating their needs into the wider programme. Anecdotal evidence from both users and providers of healthcare services indicates that many problems arise within healthcare settings themselves (Linda et al., 2005). A range of policy guidance in England and Wales in recent years has been designed to address those problems and ensure that services are improved. Initiatives have been developed to ensure that healthcare needs are identified and met more effectively. However, such projects tend to be local and often rely on short-term funding. There is as yet no evidence that services have been substantially or uniformly improved around the country or that the problems identified in statistics and reported anecdotally have diminished. A recent report on the deaths of six people with learning disabilities in England alleges institutional discrimination within the National Health Service. Concerns about the poorer health and reduced life expectancy of people with mental health problems or learning disabilities led the Disability Rights Commission (DRC) in Great Britain to undertake a formal investigation between 2004 and 2006 into health inequalities and primary healthcare. The DRC had a responsibility to prevent discrimination against disabled people and advise how inequalities can be addressed. The investigation gathered data on the nature and extent of health inequalities, which would also provide a baseline against which to measure future trends. It also examined the reasons why inequalities arise, why previous initiatives have not worked, and what needs to be done now. This paper sets out the findings from the investigation, which included six research studies and additional forms of evidence-gathering. The investigation focused on both people with mental health problems and people with learning disabilities: ...