Primary care experiences of adults reporting learning disability: a probability sample survey.

Abstract

Background: Adults with learning disability face multiple adversities, but evidence on their needs and primary care experiences is limited.

Aim: To compare the characteristics and primary care experiences of adults reporting learning disability with those who did not.

Design and setting: This was an analysis of the 2022 General Practice Patient Survey, a national probability sample survey conducted in 2022 with people registered with NHS primary care in England.

Method: This analysis reports descriptive profiles, weighted and with 95% confidence intervals. Logistic regression models adjusting for gender, age, ethnicity, and area-level deprivation compared experiences of adults reporting learning disability with those who did not.

Results: Survey participants comprised 623 157 people aged ≥16 years, including 6711 reporting learning disability. Adults reporting learning disability were more likely to be male, younger, of mixed or multiple ethnicities, and live in more deprived areas. All chronic conditions included in the survey were more common in adults reporting learning disability, especially reported sensory, neurodevelopmental, neurological, and mental health conditions. Adults reporting learning disability were twice as likely to have a preferred GP, and less likely to find their practice's website easy to navigate. They were also less likely to have confidence and trust in their healthcare professional, or feel their needs were met.

Conclusion: Adults reporting a learning disability had a higher likelihood of chronic health conditions. Their reported experiences of primary care indicate that, despite recent initiatives to improve services offered, further adaptations to the consistency and ease of access to primary care is needed.