Learning Disability Liaison Team

The role of a Learning Disability Nurse in the hospital is to offer advice, liaison and education to staff working in the hospitals, the individual with a Learning Disability and their carers.  To liaise with community teams and support services facilitating good communication.

Also part of the LD nurse role is to provide education to hospital staff about the needs of patients with a learning disability, and advice at a strategic level to influence policy and procedures within the acute setting.

A Learning Disability Nurse may support an individual with a learning disability at end of life when they access hospital care in inpatients or outpatients in these areas:

• Hospital Traffic Light Assessment
• Helping an individual to understand what tests/treatments are taking place within the hospital
• Helping an individual to understand their diagnosis, they may take place with other professionals
• Liaising with hospital services to enable equal access
• Supporting colleagues in the hospital (including End of Life Services) to understand the individual's learning disability
• Signpost to other services that may be able to offer support
• Supporting the individual to make decisions regarding their care in hospital