Investigating the experience of professional carers supporting individuals with intellectual disability who were at risk of admission – a qualitative study

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to understand the experiences of professional paid carers providing community support to people with intellectual disability “at risk of admission”. This study explores factors that were helpful or lacking in terms of the support the carers received from NHS health services during this time. Design/methodology/approach This study conducted semi-structured interview with eight participants. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Findings Three main themes and ten subthemes were identified. The first main theme was “support systems” that were available or lacking for the client and their carers. The second main theme was “training and supervision” available to the carers and their team when the individual they supported needed additional support. The third theme was “change” clients encountered which included changes in the environment as well as changes because of COVID-19 pandemic. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study on experiences of carers during specifically high stress periods, such as when the clients they are supporting are at risk of hospital admission.