Dagnan, D., Masson, J., Thwaites, R., James, A., & Hatton, C. (2018).

Training therapists to

work with people with intellectual disability in Improving Access to Psychological

Therapies (IAPT) services. Journal of Applied Research in Intellectual Disabilities, 31(5),

760–767. ​https://doi.org/10.1111/jar.12427

Many mainstream mental health services are unavailable to a significant part of

population of those with mental and intellectual disabilities. Likewise, many mainstream

therapists lack the training necessary to properly accommodate. To test the theory that

mainstream therapists may lack the knowledge and resources may be insufficient, a study was

performed with 68 therapists to receive one to two days of extra training. In order to measure

improvement, a survey was administered before and after the training to assess levels of

confidence and efficiency in providing care as a well as the level of understanding of individuals

with intellectual disabilities. All results were positive in respect to the training being beneficial

and crucial in providing proper and better care to individuals with intellectual disabilities.

The information found in this study may seem very straight-forward or common sense

based, but having research behind any claim is helpful. Even those who do have access to

treatment for mental and intellectual disabilities are often not receiving proper treatment. This

can in some cases to attributed to the medical professionals not have updated or proper training.

This study can be helpful in showing how difficult it can be to access adequate treatment for

people with intellectual disabilities, but it does not show how difficult it can be to access any

treatment at all. It is more focused on the perspectives of the therapists and not those who are

seeking their help.

Dodd, K., Burke, C., Gibson, A., Hines, E., Howarth, P., Jennison, J., … Unsworth, G. (2017).

Improving Access to Psychological Therapies for people with intellectual disabilities –

role of a reference group in achieving change. Advances in Mental Health & Intellectual

Disabilities, 11(5/6), 173–186. ​https://doi.org/10.1108/AMHID-05-2017-0016

This article focuses on the accessibility of psychological therapies for individuals with

intellectual disabilities. The program “Improving Access to Psychological Therapies” (IAPT) is

centered around the three major principles of 1) utilizing psychological therapies delivered by

professionals to optimize outcomes, 2) monitoring outcomes to encourage improvement, and 3)

supervision for the quality of care. These principles assure the best outcome in providing better

access to treatment. A reference group was set up to analyze barriers and seek out ways to

improve access to mainstream psychological therapies. These focused on change in behavior and

quality of life from the beginning to the end of the study. In a group of 60 people assessed by the

IAPT group, over half of the participants reported a positive recovery rate and improved quality

of life.

The group in this article, the IAPT, focused on the importance of having treatment

options for those with intellectual and learning disabilities. While the article does show how

important it is to have therapy and treatment, it does not present a way to expand the research

beyond the realm of this particular group. It does reaffirm through case studies and research that

it is crucial to give more individuals with disabilities access to therapy as it does improve quality

of life and provide a path to recovery. To be more relevant, this study would have to be greatly
expanded and address more of the deeply rooted issues in the health care systems. The section

titled “why the reference group worked” identifies both the successes and shortcomings of the

program which could be incredibly beneficial in moving forward to solve a problem.

Krahn, G. L., Hammond, L. and Turner, A. (2006), A cascade of disparities: Health and health

care access for people with intellectual disabilities. Ment. Retard. Dev. Disabil. Res.

Rev., 12: 70-82. doi:10.1002/mrdd.20098

This journal addresses the disparities in health coverage and therapy for people with

disabilities, specifically intellectual disabilities (ID). This is primarily determined by the

examination of health conditions and health as determined by genetics, social circumstances,

environment, individual behavior, and healthcare access. A correlation was found between

individuals with an ID and inadequate attention to medical needs, inadequate focus on the

promotion of health, and inadequate access to health care services. With early identification,

inclusion, and self-diagnosis, the impact of conditions can be lessened when paired with the

proper education of family members and caregivers, promoting healthy behaviors, and ensuring

equal access to healthcare.

While the information from this source may be a little outdated, the points are still very

relevant today. One of the biggest struggles for people with physical, mental, or intellectual

disabilities is equal access to treatment, resources, and knowledge. The study lays out how

offering better resources and options to these individuals can lead to improvements in

measurements of quality of life. Analysing and processing information in this paper is more
difficult due to the number of factors included in their research. With so many variables and

things that need to be changed to correlate to positive health responses, singling out the first and

best step to take becomes more confusing. Although it provides a strong foundation for

understanding why equal access is important, it does little to provide any potential action plan

with specific steps and goals.

Vanessa Xue-Ling Tan, & Simmonds, J. G. (2018). Parent Perceptions of Psychosocial

Outcomes of Equine-Assisted Interventions for Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder.

Journal of Autism & Developmental Disorders, 48(3), 459–469.

https://doi-org.librarylink.uncc.edu/10.1007/s10803-017-3399-3

This study focuses on how benefits of equine-assisted interventions (EAI) are perceived

by the parents of children with autism spectrum disorders who receive this form of treatment.

The perceptions were measured through interview trends from the parents’ perspective. This

interview trends revealed that EAI is perceived to result in an improved self-concept, enhanced

emotional well-being, improved self-regulatory ability, social benefits, plus other unexpected

outcomes. These benefit are believed to extend to the parents in some way due to the idea of

ecopsychological or “flow on” effects; this could show the positive outcomes of EAI are more

holistic.

Many highly beneficial forms of treatment can be overlooked for people with mental or

intellectual disabilities as they are not as mainstream or traditional. Equine assisted interventions

or equine therapy is not set in a doctor’s office. This study supports the idea that different and
unique forms of therapy should be encouraged and offered more widely. The study, however,

does not address how to make these treatment options more available or offer any form of action

beyond the study.

Van Herwegen, J., Ashworth, M., & Palikara, O. (2018). Parental views on special educational

needs provision: Cross-syndrome comparisons in Williams Syndrome, Down Syndrome,

and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Research in Developmental Disabilities, 80, 102–111.

https://doi-org.librarylink.uncc.edu/10.1016/j.ridd.2018.06.014

In this study, the parents of school aged children with Williams Syndrome, Down
Syndrome, and Autism Spectrum Disorder were asked about their views on the provisions
provided for their children by the education system. Through detailed surveys, the researchers
examined the difficulties parents knew of and experienced in their child’s education. These
surveys revealed that children with Down Syndrome had greater access to support than those
with Williams Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorders. Although all parent surveys revealed
a trend of worry and concern about educational professional’s knowledge and ability to support
special education needs and disabilities, parental satisfaction was lowest for those with children
on the Autism Spectrum. All parents also reported their children had limited access to
occupational therapy and mental health resources. Educational provisions are different for
different disorders, and some are better than others; however, the need for better educational
provisions was evident across all neurodevelopmental disorders focused on in this study.
The most relevant and useful information from this study is the support backing that
mental, intellectual, and developmental disorders do not receive adequate support or access to
necessary treatment and therapy. As the public education system is institutionalized and does
have some- although limited- funding, this would be a solid place to start in instituting resources
for those who do not have the access or awareness of how to get help. As my focus is on access
to therapy and treatment for children with disabilities, the parental perspective is increasingly
important as they understand first hand the struggles of trying to find the proper resources for
their children.