Does supported living work for people with severe intellectual disabilities?

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to look at whether a move to a supported living model of care from traditional residential group homes could improve the quality of life for those with a severe intellectual disability and other challenging needs. Design/methodology/approach – Six men with severe intellectual disabilities moved from two residential homes into new-build individual flats. Their quality of life was measured using a battery of assessments looking at; environment, relationships, community participation, interactions, mood interest and pleasure, activities, physical health and challenging behaviour. These measures were taken before the move, immediately after and six months after the move. The views of staff and family carers were also assessed at each stage. Findings – The move had a positive effect on the tenants in that it caused an improvement in their mood and a decrease in their challenging behaviours. Further improvements could be made in the tenant’s quality of life by introducing more activities. The initial concerns of family members about the move decreased over time. However staff found the changes to their working practices stressful. Research limitations/implications – The study was a small scale one because of the small number of tenants. The tenants were unable to express their own views because of their limited communication abilities so a combination of direct observation and indirect measures were used. Practical implications – In the light of the Winterbourne view report by Stephen Bubb this study looks at the impact on quality of life of a move to supported living for a group of people with complex and challenging needs who might otherwise be placed in an out of borough placement similar to Winterbourne view. Social implications – The study also looks at the impact of such a move on the family members of the individuals and on the staff who had to change their working practices to adapt to both a new working environment and model of care. Originality/value – This study also looks at the impact of a model of supported living for people with severe intellectual disabilities and complex needs rather than those with mild intellectual disabilities. This is particularly important in the post Winterbourne view climate when the authors need to look carefully at positive alternative models of care for these individuals.

The outcomes of individualized housing for people with disability and complex needs: a scoping review

“…As per the exclusion criteria, all studies reported on participants between 18-65 years, with most reporting on a population with a mean age of approximately 40 years. Most studies reported on samples that consisted of over 50% males [40,42,43,[45][46][47][48]53,57,[59][60][61] and two studies reported on a sample that was 100% male [49,50]. The number of participants included in the studies ranged from 6 to 8,892 people.…”

“…However, results of Emerson et al [42] may be influenced by a cohort effect as participants included people who had experienced institutional living. In regards to emotional functioning, Marlow and Walker [49] found that people's mood increased one month after they moved from group homes into individualized flats and that these changes were maintained after six months. Valk-Kleibeuker et al [59] found that mood did not change for participants in their study until 18 months post traumatic brain injury (TBI), after which it significantly improved.…”

“…Adaptive behaviour is the collection of conceptual, social, and practical skills learned by people to enable them to function in their everyday lives [12]. Outcomes regarding adaptive behaviour, as well as general tasks and demands, commonly showed no differences between individualized housing options (i.e., supported living, independent living and independent flats) and group homes [40,44,49,56,58]. Similarly, findings for self-care showed no difference for people in supported living or independent flats and group homes [42,49].…”

“…Outcomes regarding adaptive behaviour, as well as general tasks and demands, commonly showed no differences between individualized housing options (i.e., supported living, independent living and independent flats) and group homes [40,44,49,56,58]. Similarly, findings for self-care showed no difference for people in supported living or independent flats and group homes [42,49]. However, residents living semiindependently or independently, participated in significantly more domestic tasks, such as household cleaning, cooking, shopping and related tasks, compared to people living in family and staffed homes [44,57].…”

Modèles D’intervention Médical Et Environnemental Auprès Des Personnes Manifestant Un Trouble Grave Du Comportement, Quelles Sont Les Divergences?

“…Les deux autres études de cette catégorie sont associées au modèle environnemental. Elles mesurent le niveau de qualité de vie des personnes présentant une DI en fonction de leur type d'hébergement dans la communauté (Bertelli et al, 2013;Marlow et Walker, 2015).…”