Women who use secure services:applying the literature to women with learning disabilities

Purpose – This paper aims to review research of relevance to women with learning disabilities, focusing in particular on literature which is applicable to women with learning disabilities who use forensic services. Design/methodology/approach – Research involving women with learning disabilities over the past 30 years was sought out and reviewed, and literature relating to women living in locked wards (including those without learning disabilities) was focused upon. Related themes such as the BPD diagnosis, self injury, and aggression are explored. Findings – The author found very little research relating to women with learning disabilities who use secure services, particularly which included quotes from the women themselves. Research limitations/implications – The author recommends that more research in this area is needed, primarily research which includes the voices of women service users themselves. Originality/value – This paper will be relevant to all staff who work with women in secure services

'They've said I'm vulnerable with men':doing sexuality on locked wards

In intellectual disability services, women’s sexuality has long been considered a problem, with women being removed from their residences and segregated from men as a form of protection. This paper draws on ethnographic research based on a secure unit for people with intellectual disabilities in England. It suggests that staff and clients are concerned about the client mix on the unit, and that staff feel protective towards women service-users. Physical contact on the wards is highly regulated and all spaces are described as ‘public’, therefore women are not afforded privacy to explore their sexuality. During interviews, many of the women disclosed experiences of childhood sexual abuse and some were unsure about their sexual orientation. This paper argues that life on the locked ward positions intellectually disabled women as both sexually vulnerable and as fundamentally asexual. This prevents women from learning the skills needed to make informed choices about sexual partners

Humor and Laughter as Intentional Teaching Strategies: Professional Development for Early Childhood Educators

Research has shown that humor and laughter benefit young children’s social-emotional development (Lovorn, 2008; Semrud-Clikeman & Glass, 2010). Humor and laughter also benefit teachers (Chaniotakis & Papazoglou, 2019). However, despite the benefits, research has also shown that teachers may be hesitant to use humor and laughter for fear of losing control, not feeling inherently funny, and/or because teachers have not been taught how to use humor effectively (Chaniotakis & Papazoglou, 2019; Lovorn & Holaway, 2015). Cekaite and Andrén (2019) revealed that teachers in early childhood settings rarely responded to children’s laughter with laughter. The difference between teachers’ beliefs and practices around humor and laughter was evident in the literature, which raised the question of how professional development designed to teach educators how to use humor intentionally could positively impact children’s social and emotional development while also benefiting the teachers themselves. A solid breadth of research is available about social-emotional benefits of laughter. However, a review of the literature revealed limited research on humor and laughter in early childhood settings and limited research about humor and laughter training for teachers. Therefore, this literature review examined professional development about other early childhood topics that could offer insight into how humor training for early childhood educators may impact teaching practices. Results suggested that effective professional development about humor and laughter may alter teachers’ attitudes and practices which could ultimately benefit children\u27s social-emotional development

How do health professionals provide accessible information?

We recently worked on a study that was commissioned by East Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG). We wanted to find out how health professionals in Lancashire work with people who have communication and accessibility needs. There are clear health disparities between people with learning disabilities and the general population, leading to concern among professionals about the health information they provide

Women’s experiences of special observations on locked wards

This article discusses ‘special observation’, a practice used in inpatient units and in mental health and learning disability services. I present some perspectives on this practice from women detained on locked wards, and staff members. Despite the many valid criticisms, I show that constant observations can be used as a way to harness engagement and to improve relationships between staff and residents

Learning Disabled Women on Locked Wards : Living at the Intersection of Gender, Disability and Deviance.

This thesis explores the lives of women with learning disabilities who live in a secure unit in the North of England. It focuses on empirical data gained through ethnographic research in the Unit, which encompasses participant observation on three wards and formal interviews with service-users and staff. The theoretical framework draws on ideas in Disability Studies associated with the social model of disability and feminist methodology, which privileges accessing the voices of women and marginalised groups. The study explores how women came to be at the unit and their experiences of day-to-day life as played out through relationships with staff and other service-users. Regulation and power on the unit are explored through women's and staff accounts and fieldnotes about institutional responses to behaviour perceived as 'difficult'. Findings suggest that overt and covert attempts to regulate women's behaviour are ever present, but do not always work, and that institutional responses are at risk of replicating women's bad experiences from the past. Stories by and about women suggest that women's aggression is seen by staff as pathological, and that women are constructed as manipulative and complex in their interpersonal approaches. The women in the study valued relationships with staff and peers but these were treated ambivalently in the service. I argue that women are not 'docile bodies' in the Foucauldian sense, but shape their own identity and futures, sometimes by resisting the norms expected of them within allowed limits and sometimes by transgressing the rules. Women had clear ideas about their future, and how to progress through the service. This thesis challenges normative and institutional accounts of gender, learning disability and deviance, exploring alternative possibilities articulated by women on locked wards

‘Behind this wall’ – Experiences of seclusion on locked wards for women

Aim – To more fully understand the experiences of seclusion in a learning disability service for women. Background – This paper reports on one of the analytical themes, seclusion, from an ethnographic study exploring the lives of learning disabled women on locked wards. Method – Participant observation was used on three locked wards for women in a learning disability secure (forensic) unit in the United Kingdom. Themes from the analysis of field-notes were used to construct an interview schedule. Sixteen detained women and ten staff participated in interviews. Results – The thematic analysis produced four areas of relevance: the seclusion room environment, reasons for using seclusion, termination of seclusion and alternatives to seclusion. Conclusion – Detained women’s descriptions of seclusion portrayed a bewildering, distressing experience which violated their privacy. Alternative practices such as providing a space for anger and resolve, and time for discussion with staff were identified

Stature and Criminal Behavior

Minorities are significantly overrepresented in America\u27s prison population, and many studies have been conducted to determine possible causes for such a disparity. Few of these studies, however, have examined small stature as a potential contributor to criminal behavior. This study examines the relationship between criminal behavior and stature among American males. The heights, weights, stature scores (a function of the product of height and weight) and the body mass indices of criminals are examined as a whole, as well as by subgroup based on race, locality, and nature of the crime committed. The average weight of the male criminal population is substantially lower than that of the general male population. The center of the height distribution for urban criminals is found to be lower than men who commit crimes in suburban or rural areas, as is the center of the weight distribution for index criminals when compared to non-index criminals. Murderers demonstrate the smallest mean and median heights and weights when compared to the rest of the criminal population. Although small stature can be associated with certain crimes and localities, size cannot be associated with the racial disparity in today\u27s prisons

Friends and family:regulation and relationships on the locked ward

This ethnographic project explored the lives of women with learning disabilities on three locked wards. Aspects of these women’s lives were regulated by the service; in particular, relationships with family outside the unit, and peer relationships inside the unit. The women in this study valued these relationships, but they were treated with ambivalence by the service. Success in future community integration and accessing community resources can be dependent on the nature and quality of relationships with others, and therefore services should acknowledge that service-users need to forge relationships of their own choosing

“Vicarious thinking” is a key driver of score change in Delphi surveys for COS development and is facilitated by feedback of results

Acknowledgements: We would like to thank and acknowledge the participants in the Delphi surveys used here. We also thank individuals who contributed significantly to the wider COS development projects: Professor Andrew G. Renehan and Professor Caroline Sanders (CORMAC); Dr. Thomas B. L. Lam (COMPACTERS); Professor Iain A Bruce and Professor Jane M Blazeby (GASTROS). Funding: This work was supported by a National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Senior Investigator Award (NF-SI_0513-10025). The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and not necessarily those of the NIHR, or the Department of Health and Social Care.Peer reviewedPublisher PD