UK inquiry to probe learning disability deaths

LONDON, March 12 (Reuters) Health Secretary Patricia Hewitt ordered an independent inquiry today into the deaths of six people with learning disabilities after a charity said they had died because of ''institutional discrimination''.

The inquiry would be set up without delay and Hewitt said she had asked to meet the families of the deceased patients.

''It is obvious that while parts of the National Health Service delivers excellent care to people with learning disabilities, there are other areas that do not reach this necessary standard,'' she said.

Hewitt called the inquiry in response to a hard-hitting report from charity Mencap detailing the deaths of six people, all with learning difficulties.

Mencap said they had died after medics failed to diagnose their conditions in time for effective treatment.

''These six shocking and tragic cases demonstrate why it is Mencap's belief that there is institutional discrimination within the NHS against people with a learning disability, leading to neglect and to premature death,'' the charity said.

Mencap said people with a learning disability were seen as a low priority within the health service.

It said there was widespread ignorance among medics about how to treat such patients.

''They may wrongly believe that a presenting problem is a feature of someone's learning disability and that not much can be done about it,'' it said in a report.

Mencap called for all health staff to receive learning disability training.

It said in all six cases families said they were not listened to by the medical staff treating their relatives.

In one of the cases, a 26-year old woman with severe learning difficulties died from cancer after delays in diagnosis reduced her chances of survival from 50-50 to just 10 per cent.

Doctors had refused to treat her, saying she would not co-operate with treatment, only agreeing after her parents went to the High Court.

But by then it was too late for effective treatment, and she died shortly after in a hospice.

Another of the six patients, a 30-year-old man with severe learning disability and very little speech, died after a perforated appendix.

His parents had repeatedly asked his doctor if there was anything wrong with his appendix or bowel but had been told there was no cause for alarm, even being told he had a virus, despite their son showing clear signs of distress.

The families in all six cases have lodged complaints with the hospitals concerned and the Healthcare Commission.

REUTERS SB PM0924