The value of practice and treatment guidelines in improving mental health care is well established; however, no such guidelines exist for the mental health treatment of adults with intellectual disability. An essential step in the composition of guidelines is broad and careful consideration of the relevant empirical literature. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify efficacious and effective treatment practices for individuals with intellectual disability and co-occurring psychiatric disorders. The search across three databases (PubMed, PsycINFO, Embase) resulted in 37 studies that met inclusion criteria. The methodological rigor and study designs were evaluated to identify research gaps. The methodological strength of each study was rated on four indicators, participant characterization, intervention description, outcome measures, and statistical analyses. Only 13.5% of the studies reviewed were randomized controlled trials; 54.1% were quasi-experimental (either with pre/post interventions or use of non-randomized waitlist control, and 24.3% used some type of case series design. The majority of studies were from a cognitive behavioral orientation. While studies varied in scientific rigor, no one study was rated highly on all four indicators. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.
Public Health Significance StatementSignificant barriers to mental health treatment for adults with ID continue to persist. Contributing to this is clinicians' reported lack of training, resources, and knowledge to serve individuals with ID. In order to address this, it is imperative that clinicians and researchers are aware of the state of research in this area, both its advancement over the past 20 years as well as the persisting gaps. This systematic review updates the current state of the literature, paying particular attention to the advancements in use of outcome measures and manualized treatments and the persist challenges related to diagnostic assessment and sample characterization.
Mental disorders in adults with intellectual disability (ID) occur at rates much higher than in those without ID; however, many clinicians report little to no training in providing clinical services to this population. Due to the historically qualitative nature of the most literature in this field, it has been difficult for clinicians to identify appropriate accommodations and assessments to make treatment more accessible to those with ID. The objective of this scoping review was to identify psychotherapy practices for adults with ID in the areas of treatment accommodations and outcome measures/treatment monitoring tools. In the absence of treatment guidelines for this population, practices were drawn from treatment outcome research. Research reports describing treatment for this population were examined to identify the types of accommodations and practices employed by clinical research scientists when delivering psychotherapy. Specific practices, accommodations and tools are suggested based on the available research. The most common type of intervention was cognitive behavior therapy (i.e., 48.1%). Key aspects of accommodations to treatment included incorporating self-determination, the use of simplified language, visual supports, involving caregivers, and teaching prerequisite skills. This review details the accommodations and provides some practical suggestions and resources for clinicians when providing psychotherapy to adults with ID.
Until recently, disability was presumed to be equivalent to illness, with similar expectations of dependence, inactivity, and exclusion from participation in community life (Krahn et al., 2006). People with disabilities were reputed to necessarily have poorer health. However, models of disability have evolved to recognize environmental as well as individual impacts on functioning, with a corresponding change in expectations for community participation. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as "a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity" (WHO, 1948). This definition underlies the fundamental premise of this chapter, that having a disability does not ordain poor health, and that good health is an attainable goal for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Health is an important aspect of well-being for everyone. This chapter provides an overview of health issues for children and adults with IDD. While people with IDD can be healthy, they are more vulnerable to health disparities.Health disparities are health differences that adversely affect socially disadvantaged groups (Braveman et al., 2011). Just as there are many causes of IDD, many determinants contribute to what has been termed a "cascade of disparities" in this population (Krahn et al., 2006). These determinants of health include genetic, social circumstance,
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