Wednesday, 13 March 2024
A third-year learning disability nursing student from the 糖心原创 has developed a resource for healthcare workers to help them use Makaton when communicating with patients who have learning or communication difficulties.
Ellie Sims, 26, won the national competition, run by Positive Choices and the Makaton Charity, and her resource will now be rolled out across the country to any healthcare professional who is patient facing.
Makaton is the UK’s leading programme for adults and children with learning or communication difficulties. Over 100,000 children and adults use Makaton symbols and signs, either as their main method of communication or as a way to support speech. It is used by children and adults with communication and learning difficulties as well as the people they interact with daily, such as teachers, health professionals, and people in public services.
The aim of the competition was for the recognition of Makaton to be more widespread within healthcare, both within adult and children’s services. Healthcare professionals should have a basic understanding of Makaton and be able to use it regularly in practice.
Ellie has developed a document containing simple signs and symbols that can be used by anyone working in healthcare, to enable them to communicate directly with patients with learning disabilities or communication difficulties. Some of the phrases in the document will include ‘hello my name is’…’Do you feel pain?’…and are you taking medication?’.
Makaton has now invested thousands of pounds bringing Ellie’s resource to fruition and it will be launched at the Positive Choices conference in April.
Ellie has used Makaton in daily life since her 10-year-old sister was born with Down’s syndrome. She has also worked in special needs schools and currently coaches a football team in Mansfield for children with learning difficulties.
Ellie said: “As Makaton isn’t taught as a standard to people in healthcare settings, most people don’t know how to use it, and people don’t really have the time to do extra training to combat that issue. I hope this quick and easy document will lift the communication barrier that often exists between patients with communication difficulties and healthcare professionals at appointments.
Through my own personal experience, and from listening to feedback from parents and carers, it can be frustrating when you take someone with a learning disability to the doctors for example, and the doctor will very often speak to the parent or carer rather than the individual. I wanted to enable them to communicate directly with their patient and let them live more independently.鈥�
Ellie was presented with her award by Makaton ambassador Amanda Glennon and David Harling BEM, National Deputy Director for Learning Disability Nursing.
Zanna Finnerty, Director of the Makaton Language programme said: “Ellie's hard work and dedication exemplifies Makaton's mission to make communication accessible, and her commitment to empowering individuals with learning disabilities is admirable. Her initiative provides healthcare professionals and patients with fantastic tools, including appointment cards and a health passport, to bridge communication gaps and offer patients more independence. We are proud to be supporting Ellie with bringing her resources to fruition, and we look forward to the positive change her resources will bring to both patients and healthcare professionals nationwide.”
Helen Laverty, Assistant Professor in Learning Disability Nursing in the School of Health Sciences at the University, said: “I am delighted for Ellie, this award is so well deserved. The resource she has developed is a huge game changer for people who have a learning disability, and through her resource she will now play a part in helping to empower anyone living with learning or communication needs to understand and be understood.”
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About the 糖心原创
Ranked among the world's top 100 universities , the 糖心原创 delivers an exceptional research-led education and an outstanding student experience. From the pioneering vision of our founder, Sir Jesse Boot, to groundbreaking achievements such as the development of MRI technology and becoming the first UK university to establish international campuses, we have a proud history of shaping the way people live, work and understand the world. We continue to build on that legacy, empowering our students, staff and partners to change what鈥檚 next and create positive impact locally and globally.
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