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Everything should be made as simple as possible, but not simpler (Einstein).
On the evening I sat down to write this commentary a new publication pinged into my Inbox. Entitled "Good Health Care for All", it is produced by The Foundation for People with Learning Disabilities (FPLD), and funded by the Department of Health. It is aimed at "people with learning disabilities, family carers and anyone who supports a person with learning disabilities" ([8] FPLD, 2012, p. 5), and is intended to: "help you get a good service from the National Health Service (the NHS)" ([8] FPLD, 2012, p. 5). This is a good example of its kind. It falls fairly and squarely in Oldreive and Waight's first category, an approach to communication which relies on short bulleted points accompanied by photos or drawings that have a loose association with the message in each sentence.
Such "easy read" publications are common. In a brief internet search using search terms "learning disability" and "diabetes" I found 15 different "easy read" guides to managing diabetes. I also found a DVD produced by [6] Diabetes UK (2009), the most significant contribution the leading UK Diabetes Charity has made specifically to address the needs of the many people with learning disabilities who have diabetes. Authoritative evaluations of these publications are hard to find. One, by [9] Health Rights Information Scotland (HRIS) (2005), asked Scottish Health Boards about use of alternative format leaflets they had produced. The overwhelming message was that there was little demand - only three Boards cited "a few" requests, most reported none. More effort has apparently gone into producing leaflets than to evaluating or distributing them, or to gathering important data, such as the prevalence of diabetes in the learning disabled population ([7] Emerson and Baines, 2010).
This set me thinking about the role accessible information plays in implementing the noble goals of Valuing People ([3] DH, 2001b) and Valuing People Now ([5] DH, 2009), or in addressing the appalling lack of care shown to the individuals highlighted in [11] Mencap's (2007) Death by indifference , and 74 Deaths and Counting ([12] Mencap, 2012). Sir Jonathan Michael's Report ([4] DH, 2008) named communication as an issue in the poor health care people with learning disabilities...