Tag: intellectual disabilities

art from words1 Comment

No/rmal

Suzanne Conboy-Hill

Two thirds of the way through a painting degree with the Open College of the Arts, I needed some text to insert into a large painting/collage illustrating the idea of rifts. Previous pieces in this series have been geo-political, socio-political, and imagined; this one is about mental capacity and health. I’ve spent my professional life as a clinical psychologist working with adults with intellectual disabilities. When I began in the 1980s, they were still ‘mentally handicapped patients’ housed in huge, bleak, emotionally barren institutions. The classification was an improvement on previous terminology, much of which has found its way into … Continue reading No/rmal

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Margaret Fleming

Suzanne Conboy-Hill

This woman probably died in 1999. That’s when she was last seen by her GP and by anyone at all who wasn’t her carer. Until 2016 NO ONE NOTICED. Margaret had learning disabilities. Her carers claimed benefits on her behalf until 2016 when benefits officials FINALLY paid a visit to her home. Her carers, I use the term loosely, claimed she was at the house in 2017 and ran off when police arrived to search for her. They’ve now been convicted of her murder. This report and image come from the Scottish Daily Record, but it’s not the only instance … Continue reading Margaret Fleming

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learning disabilities, psychology, terminal careLeave a comment

‘What does psychology have to offer at end of life?’ – an EAPC re-blog

Suzanne Conboy-Hill

In her well-articulated article, Dr Jenny Strachan, Clinical Psychologist, Marie Curie Hospice, Edinburgh, United Kingdom, talks about what it is that psychology has to offer when there is no mental health problem to treat: The ‘science of mind and behaviour’ has many branches. Developmental psychology explores how our minds and behaviours are shaped by our early years’ experiences. Cognitive neuropsychology investigates how they are determined by the structure and functions of the brain. Social psychology considers the influence of the groups, large and small, in which we belong. If psychologists in palliative care stick to a narrow, ‘clinical’ interpretation of the role, … Continue reading ‘What does psychology have to offer at end of life?’ – an EAPC re-blog

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academic, Brighton University, capacity to consent, high impact journal, Imperial College, learning disabilities, virtual world1 Comment

Using Virtual Reality to Provide Health Care Information to People With Intellectual Disabilities

Suzanne Conboy-Hill

It can take a long time to translate the uphill trek of the funding application into the enervating research you set out to do And afterwards, there seems to be an even longer trail towards placing an academic report of that work in a suitable publication.  The Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR) is about as appropriate a positioning as we could have hoped for, with its focus on best use of technology in the interests of health. As you might expect, JMIR does not confine its publication to dry text, and so there are images drawn from the study, and even a video tour of the virtual environment. We are … Continue reading Using Virtual Reality to Provide Health Care Information to People With Intellectual Disabilities

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