More Than ‘Keeping an Eye’: Ensuring Children With Intellectual Disabilities Are Safe and Feel Safe in Hospital

Background

There is a lack of evidence to inform the provision of safe hospital care and treatment to children with intellectual disabilities.

Methods

Interviews were conducted with 52 parents/carers of 42 children with intellectual disabilities and 98 hospital staff about the care of children with intellectual disabilities during in-patient stays in English hospitals. Data were analysed using reflexive thematic analysis.

Findings

Factors potentially impacting on the safety of children with intellectual disabilities in hospital are encompassed under four domains: parental vigilance, child vulnerability, staffing capability and capacity, and the environment.

Conclusions

A new healthcare lens is needed which places equal priority on the non-medical and medical needs of patients, and which recognises the importance of children and their parents both feeling and being safe in hospital. The use of a risk assessment instrument to facilitate this has the potential for multiple improvements at all levels.