Learning Disability Nursing
Learning Disability Nursing
Editor by:
John Turnbull
Book Description
Learning disability nurses play a leading role in the care and support of people with learning disabilities. Learning Disability Nursing explores the theory and practice of learning disability nursing, with an emphasis on understanding the experiences of learning disability nurses as they seek to practice effectively. It examines key issues faced by people with learning disabilities and those who support them and promotes the role of knowledgeable and reflective practitioners.
Develops a framework for learning disability nursing practice
- Examines key issues for people with learning disabilities
- Identifies distinctive features of learning disability nursing
- Supports learning disability nurses in developing their roles and to support those with learning disabilities in exercising their rights.
- Explores ethical and moral dilemmas, challenges and successes
In recent years, learning disability nurses have embarked on two important journeys. The publication of Valuing People (Department of Health, 2001) the White Paper signaled the fact that we have entered a different and exciting era in the care and support of people with learning disabilities and their families. This is an era in which the emphasis will no longer be on where people live but how people live and, in particular, how they can be supported to exercise their rights and to lead full and satisfying lives. I firmly believe that learning disability nurses can play a key role in this future by using their distinctive knowledge and skill to work with individuals with learning dis- abilities, to provide support to families and other professionals and to influence the course of social change for the benefit of people with learning disabilities. If learning disability nurses are going to achieve this, they will need to develop their understanding of nursing practice and the sources of knowledge that nurses draw upon as well as make positive use of the factors that have combined to shape a learning disability nursing identity. A book like this might not be able to fulfill all of these needs but it was written to help learning disability nurses make a start on this journey. It was also written to help others understand learning disability nursing better so that they can provide support for their colleagues.
At the same time that services in which nurses work are undergoing change, there has never been a greater demand on professionals to account for their practice. Part of this means describing and explaining their practice to others in order to build trust and confidence. Part of this also means being able to demonstrate where success has been achieved. In the past learning disability nurses have had problems in describing and providing evidence of their contribution to people's lives. Therefore, this book was written to provide some signposts for nurses in their other journey into a future in which there will be clearer role expectations of learning disability nurses. Given this, the contributors to this book and I hope that readers will use it to approach the future with greater confidence in their practice but ultimately in the expectation of healthier and more valued lifestyles for people with learning disabilities.
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