Safer use of psychotropic medicines for people with learning disabilities
There are approximately 1.3 million people with a learning disability in England, with around 14% of this population prescribed psychotropic medicines, compared to just 1% of the general population. While these medicines can be beneficial for conditions such as psychosis, depression, anxiety, and epilepsy, they also carry risks of side effects and reduced quality of life.
Over the last year, Health Innovation East Midlands (HIEM) has been working with Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland (LLR) ICB and Northamptonshire ICB on a National Medicines Safety Improvement Programme (MedSIP) to: 'help people with learning disability at risk of behaviour that challenges, reduce harm from psychotropic medicines'.
Rich McBain, Senior Improvement Lead for the MedSIP programme, HIEM said:
Behaviour that challenges is not a diagnosis, it describes a range of behaviour that some people with learning disability may display when their needs are not being met.
If psychotropic medicines are used for behaviour that challenges, they should be used for the shortest time possible, at the lowest effective dose, and reviewed regularly.
HIEM has been collaborating with the ICBs to take a whole-system approach to improvement and has been mapping the system, involving health, social care, voluntary sector and lived experience. The ICBs have undertaken a system-wide action planning process that will enable improvements in care during 2026/27. They have also agreed the following mission statement for the programme:
- We help people with learning disabilities live safe and healthy lives.
- We make sure individuals only take the medicines they really need
- We give kind and careful support.
- We respect people's rights, dignity, and choices
- We will make no decisions about individuals, without them
Laura Rodman, Service Development Manager for LLR Learning Disability and Autism Collaborative at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust said:
It has been great to be a part of a system-wide programme that can benefit from - and contribute to - national learning. Locally, the project has already identified some key actions over the short and longer term that the teams are working to introduce and we look forward to sharing the results .
As part of the programme, HIEM also held a webinar for health and care providers across the country to hear about ready-to-implement innovations to improve shared decision-making and care planning, enhance multi-agency system working, support safe prescribing of psychotropics and expand access to non-pharmacological support.
Learn more about the programme and download resources here.
If you want to find out more about the programme contact: healthinnovation-em@nottingham.ac.uk