At Elysium Healthcare we are keen to share our professional knowledge, thoughts and experience with the wider Learning Disability and Autism communities.
Each year we host a CPD Certified educational conference where we invite a number of external delegates and our internal staff to hear professionals and academics talk about key topics within the areas of learning disability, autism and challenging behaviour.
Our Latest Conference
On Thursday 2nd November Elysium Healthcare hosted a CPD certified conference entitled Managing Adults with Learning Disability, Autism and Severe Challenging Behaviour.
The first of two keynote speakers for the day was Heather Clarke-Lewis, the Lead Occupational Therapist at The Woodhouse Hospital in Cheadle, Staffordshire. Heather is a qualified Sensory Integration Practitioner and leads the assessment and treatment of sensory integration needs within The Woodhouse. Heather gave a really insightful talk on what it feels like for a person with sensory overload, likening some of the sensations to wearing a high neck, thick, scratchy jumper when you’re too warm and wanting to take it off; to driving in heavy rain with broken windscreen wipers and not being able to see in front of you clearly.
Heather then went on to share with delegates a case study of a patient she has been working and how she has formed a ‘sensory diet’ for him to help with sensory overload. There were some fantastic positive outcomes from the case study with the patient now getting ready to be discharged into the community.
- You can view Heather’s full presentation here – Assessing & Treating the Sensory Needs of Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder
The second keynote speaker for the day was Geoff Evans. Geoff is an expert in the field of autism and has built a national and international reputation as a renowned speaker and specialist trainer. Geoff has been shortlisted for the NAS lifetime achievement award and Laing Buisson Significant Lifetime Contribution to Care Award.
Geoff gave a very lively and informative presentation that looked at personalised approaches to managing challenging behaviour and behaviours of concern, and how holistic approaches provide the best outcomes in individuals with Complex Learning Difficulties and Disabilities (CLDD).
- You can view Geoff’s full presentation here – A Holistic Approach to Behaviours of Concern
Delegates were able to take advantage of three workshops at the conference which covered the following topics;
Reducing Challenging Behaviour led by Carl Slaney, Behaviour Management Specialist This workshop focused on the importance of least restrictive practice in managing challenging behaviour
Delivering Positive Outcomes through single person hospital services led by Donna Fleming, Hospital Manager at Healthlinc House. This workshop revolved around a case study on a patient in the single person service at Healthlinc House and the positive outcomes achieved. The patients parents were also present and gave their perspective on how the service has helped their child.
Developing new bespoke services through collaborative working led by Ken Ngwang, Service Lead at Bradley Apartments. This workshop discussed the development of a community based single occupancy apartment based care for a person with challenging behaviour
Previous Conferences
Further Resources
