Using Do Not Resuscitate (DNR) orders on people with learning disabilities is a “national human rights scandal”.
That’s the view of Beth Morrison, a Scottish disability campaigner.
Charity Mencap has said it received reports last month of people with learning disabilities being told they would not be resuscitated if they fell ill with coronavirus (Covid-19).
Morrison, who runs charity Positive and Active Behaviour Support Scotland (PABSS), said: “I’m absolutely horrified. It’s utterly scandalous.”
Medics using Do Not Resuscitate orders
Health watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has said people with learning disabilities died needlessly last year because of medics using DNR orders.
Official figures from Public Health England show people with learning disabilities are four times more likely to die from Covid-19 than the general population.
Morrison fears the outcome if her learning-disabled son Calum falls ill with the disease.
Calum, 22, also has epilepsy, cerebral palsy and autism.
Morrison, 55, from Monifieth in Angus, added: “I’m frightened and I have been frightened for nearly a year now about what would happen if Calum caught coronavirus and was taken into hospital.”
Orders used purely because of learning disability
Medics should reserve DNR orders for people who are too frail to undergo treatment.
But Mencap has said in some cases they have applied the orders purely because the person had a learning disability.
The Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) has asked the CQC to investigate the use of DNR orders and the watchdog is due to report back this year.
The DHSC says the CQC will raise cases with the General Medical Council and “take action” where medics “are responsible”.
A spokesperson said applying DNR orders to any group of people in a blanket fashion is “completely unacceptable”.
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Published: 8 March 2021
