title: The provision of aids and adaptations, risk assessments, and incident reporting and recording procedures in relation to injury prevention for adults with intellectual disabilities: cohort study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Adults with intellectual disabilities (IDs) experience a higher incidence of injury, compared with the general population. The aim of this study was to investigate the provision of aids and adaptations, residential service providers' individual risk assessments and training in these, and injury incident recording and reporting procedures, in relation to injury prevention.
  
  
  METHODS
  Interviews were conducted with a community-based cohort of adults with IDs (n = 511) who live in Greater Glasgow, Scotland, UK and their key carer (n = 446). They were asked about their aids and adaptations at home, and paid carers (n = 228) were asked about individual risk assessments, their training, and incident recording and reporting procedures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Four hundred and twelve (80.6%) of the adults with IDs had at least one aid or adaptation at home to help prevent injury. However, a proportion who might benefit, were not in receipt of them, and surprisingly few had temperature controlled hot water or a bath thermometer in place to help prevent burns/scalds, or kitchen safety equipment to prevent burns/scalds from electric kettles or irons. Fifty-four (23.7%) of the paid carers were not aware of the adult they supported having had any risk assessments, and only 142 (57.9%) had received any training on risk assessments. Considerable variation in incident recording and reporting procedures was evident.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  More work is needed to better understand, and more fully incorporate, best practice injury prevention measures into routine support planning for adults with IDs within a positive risk-taking and risk reduction framework.
authors: Institute of Applied Health Research, Glasgow Caledonian University, Glasgow, UK.
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Finlayson
authors: A
authors: A
authors: Jackson
authors: D
authors: D
authors: Mantry
authors: J
authors: J
authors: Morrison
authors: S-A
authors: SA
authors: Cooper
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008607:Intellectual Disability / Q000451:nursing; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011482:Protective Devices; D018570:Risk Assessment; D012308:Risk Management; D014947:Wounds and Injuries / Q000517:prevention & control*; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: aids and adaptations; falls; injury prevention; intellectual disabilities; risk assessment