NICE advises on care of people with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour
Local authorities and NHS bodies should provide specialist community care for people with learning disabilities who behave in a way that challenges to avoid admissions to psychiatric wards or residential homes, new draft guidance from NICE says.
They should only be admitted as a last resort after all other options have been considered. If they are admitted, they should be as close as possible to their home, the draft guidance advises.
Estimates suggest that there are 1.2 million people with a learning disability in England, and between 10-17% of those have behaviour that challenges.
