Information for people with a learning disability and/or their carers when visiting Kingston Hospital.

Learning disabilities liaison service

Gracie Holt.PNGThe service is here to support patients and/or their carers when accessing the hospital. Gracie Holt, Acute Learning Disability Liaison Practitioner, leads the Learning Disability Liaison Service at Kingston Hospital (pictured right).

The service helps ensure that people with a learning disability get the care they need when they need it. We can help in the following ways:

  • create or provide easy read information to help you understand your treatment or what is going to happen
  • work with staff and give advice and support to the acute staff to meet the needs of people with a learning disability
  • help to organise reasonable adjustments, like a longer appointment time or a quieter waiting room
  • help patients and/or their carers prepare for a hospital visit
  • help organise and attend appointments, or best interest meetings.

You can contact the Learning Disability Liaison Service, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm.

Contact the team

Telephone: 0208 934 6895 or Ext. 6895
Email: khft.learningdisabilityteam@nhs.net

If you do not have a learning disability but have Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and would like to notify the team of your reasonable adjustments, we can make sure these are recorded and shared with the relevant departments for you. Please get in touch on the same details.

Hospital passport

Patients with a learning disability and/or their carers should ensure they bring with them their Hospital Passport (this is sometimes known as a Healthcare Passport).

If you don’t have one, please fill one in before you come to hospital. If you come to the emergency department and don’t have one, we can help fill one in with you.

You can download the blank hospital passport here.

Reasonable adjustments graphic.png

Our staff will ask if you need any adjustments:

“Do you or someone you care for need an adjustment because of an impairment or disability?”

If you or someone you care for may have difficult accessing health and care services, let us know. We are committed to making our services accessible to everyone.

Examples of reasonable adjustments:

  • Larger text or pictures for those who have difficulty reading or understanding small text
  • Quieter waiting area for those who feel anxious in loud or busy environments
  • A supporter present during all health interactions for those who need a family member or carer to assist with communication, comfort and understanding

We are here to support you. We will document your needs and adjustments in your patient record to make sure you have consistent support during future visits.

We want to hear about your experiences coming to Kingston Hospital. If you are a person with a learning disability and/or Autism Spectrum Disorder, then please get in touch to give any feedback.

See our Easy Read information on the Learning Disability Liaison Team at Kingston Hospital.