Health Literacy and Better Health for People With Intellectual Disability

Health literacy is about being able to find, understand and use health information and services to make decisions about your health. This lesson explains what it means for people with intellectual disability and for the workers who support them. Key points: health literacy is not just reading ability; it includes knowing your body, asking questions, understanding instructions and navigating services; many health systems are hard to understand; and support workers can build a person's health literacy by explaining things simply, encouraging questions and helping the person take part in their own health decisions.

People with intellectual disability experience much poorer health outcomes than the general population, and many of those differences are avoidable. This lesson explains why. Key points: the Australian Government's National Roadmap for Improving the Health of People with Intellectual Disability notes more than twice the rate of avoidable deaths and lower rates of preventive health care; causes include communication barriers, rushed appointments and missed screening; diagnostic overshadowing happens when new symptoms are wrongly blamed on the disability or behaviour; and support workers help by describing changes clearly and asking for them to be checked.

People with intellectual disability can have a health assessment with their GP once a year, supported by Medicare. This lesson explains what it is and how you can help. Key points: the assessment looks at physical, mental and social health and helps find unmet needs and preventable conditions; the Comprehensive Health Assessment Program, or CHAP, is a free tool that can guide it; the person and their supporter can fill in the first part before the visit; your role is to help book it, gather information with the person and support follow up of any recommendations.

Good preparation can turn a stressful appointment into a useful one. This lesson covers what to do before, during and after a health appointment. Key points: help the person understand what will happen, using pictures or social stories if helpful; bring a health summary, medication list and notes of recent changes; ask for a longer appointment, a quiet space or reasonable adjustments; during the visit, support the person to speak for themselves and help only as much as needed; ask the clinician to explain in plain language; and afterwards, record outcomes and pass on instructions accurately.

Health information is only useful if the person can understand it. This lesson explains easy read and other accessible formats. Key points: easy read uses short sentences, everyday words and supporting pictures; government and health organisations publish easy read health resources, including about the annual health assessment; other formats include social stories, photos, videos, models and communication aids; ask the person how they like to get information; and check understanding rather than assuming it.

Support workers are often the first to notice that someone is unwell. This lesson covers what to watch for, how to report it, and where your role ends. Key points: know the person's usual baseline; watch for changes in eating, drinking, bowels, sleep, mood, mobility, skin and behaviour; record changes factually with times and details; tell your team leader and follow the support plan; call 000 in an emergency; your role is to observe, support and report, while diagnosis and treatment belong to clinicians; and this course builds knowledge only.

This case study follows Mei Ling, a woman with an intellectual disability who communicates mostly through gestures and a few words. She starts refusing food and hitting her cheek, and some staff put it down to behaviour. The lesson shows how her support worker compares what he sees with her usual baseline, records and reports the change, supports her at a GP appointment and follows up the dental referral. Key points: know the person's baseline, think of a physical cause first, report changes promptly, and make sure follow up actions are passed on so nothing is lost.

This case study follows Daniel, a young man with an intellectual disability who is due for his annual health assessment and feels nervous about doctors. The lesson shows how his support worker helps him prepare using easy read information, supports him to speak for himself during the appointment, and responds when the GP starts talking only to the worker. It also covers what to do after the appointment so that the actions agreed are recorded and followed. Key points: prepare together, keep the person at the centre, check understanding, and follow up on every action.