Over one million people have now completed the e-learning segment of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism.
The “significant milestone” comes one year after the Oliver McGowan e-learning package was launched and seven years after Oliver’s tragic death in November 2016.
The e-learning programme, which forms the first part of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training on Learning Disability and Autism, will enable health and care workers to better support people with a learning disability and autistic people, improving their understanding of how to work with them and meet their needs.
The Health and Care Act 2022 wrote into law the mandatory requirement for all CQC-registered services to provide training for their staff on caring for people with a learning disability and autistic people, appropriate to their role.
It followed years of tireless campaigning by Oliver’s mother Paula McGowan.
The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training programme is the government’s preferred and recommended route for health and care workers to satisfy this requirement.
Oliver McGowan training will improve understanding in health and care
Oliver died aged 18 after medical staff administered antipsychotic medication to him during a stay in hospital, despite warnings from him and his family that he had experienced adverse reactions to it in the past. The tragic and preventable death highlighted a lack of understanding of the needs of people with a learning disability and autistic people and a need for better training for all staff in health and care settings.
Once staff have completed the 90-minute eLearning segment of the Oliver McGowan mandatory training programme, they will undergo a second phase of training which is dependent upon their role.
Staff who only require a general awareness of the support that people with learning disabilities or autistic people may need will follow up their eLearning with an interactive online webinar session, lasting 60 minutes. This is known as Tier 1 training.
Those who may directly care for people with a learning disability or autistic people – or who make decisions about their care – will undergo a face-to-face, classroom-based 6-hour training course which is co-delivered by people with a learning disability and autistic people, known as Experts by Lived Experience. This is the Tier 2 training package.
These sessions are also being rolled out across England, with the one million people who have completed the eLearning package also needing to complete either the webinar or classroom training (depending on their role and responsibilities) in order to complete the full programme and meet the mandatory training requirements.
The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training programme was developed in partnership by NHS England, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and Skills for Care and designed, delivered and evaluated with the help of people with a learning disability and autistic people, as well as their families and carers.
The official rollout of the training began one year ago after a successful two-year trial involving 8,300 health and care staff across England.
Participants in the trial reported an improvement in their knowledge, skills and communication with autistic people and people with a learning disability after completing the programme.
NHS committed to reducing health inequalities
The programme also serves to support the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan by upskilling the wider health and care workforce to enable them to provide “appropriately adjusted care for people with a learning disability and autistic people” in order to help reduce health inequalities in England.
The NHS’ commitment to improving health outcomes for people with a learning disability and autistic people also includes:
- Improving assessments
- Enhanced autism training for psychiatrists
- Investment in community services to enable people to receive support close to home
As well as upskilling over one million people to date in England, the eLearning package has also been made available to international audiences via the eIntegrity platform following requests from across the globe.
The Chief Workforce, Training and Education Officer at NHS England, Navina Evans, heralded the one million completions milestone as a “fantastic achievement,” but added that it was “important to remind ourselves that this is only the first step in an important large-scale intervention to address health inequalities for people with a learning disability and autistic people.”
She also said:
“The training is a vital element of an ongoing culture change to ensure our services are safe, accessible, and adjusted to people’s needs.
“We are therefore urging employers across health and care to ensure staff get the training appropriate to their role – to make an impact now and for future generations.”
Oliver McGowan would be ‘incredibly proud’
Meanwhile, Oliver’s mother Paula said she was “pleased that over a million people have a much better understanding of people who have a learning disability and autistic people.”
She added:
“It is a significant milestone to have so many people now completing part one of The Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training, meaning that our learning disability and autism communities will have much better experiences living in society and accessing health and care.
“I know that if Oliver was here, he would be incredibly proud.”
Health Minister Maria Caulfield said the “essential training” was helping to develop the “right culture, knowledge and skills to support people with a learning disability and autistic people” and that she was “committed” to improving care.
She concluded by urging all health and care staff to “complete this vital training.”
Training for learning disabilities and autism
First Response Training (FRT) is a leading, national training provider. They deliver over 7,000 courses each year in the fields of health and safety, first aid, fire safety, food safety, mental health, health and social care and other special focus topics.
Their diverse portfolio includes training awards designed for health and social care organisations, such as Infection Control and Prevention, Safeguarding Adults, Duty of Care, Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Person Centred Care and Support and many others.
Their course portfolio spans Care Certificate standards, Level 2 and Level 3 Awards and training for supervisors and managers.
FRT are approved to deliver Tier 1 and Tier 2 of the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training Framework for Learning Disabilities and Autism with trained trios.
The leading training provider, which works with many large and national learning disability care providers, has partnered with charitable organisations to source Experts by Lived Experience for their delivery teams.
The Facilitating Trainers, or subject matter experts, have been handpicked from FRT’s team of over 100 highly qualified and experienced trainers. They combine relevant, personal experience with professional understanding and NHS England training.
A spokesperson from FRT said:
“We are incredibly proud to be able to deliver the Oliver McGowan Mandatory Training Framework for Learning Disabilities and Autism, with Trainer Trios trained and approved by NHS England.
“It follows years of committed campaigning by Oliver’s family, but this framework will now revolutionise training for those who work with and support individuals with learning disabilities and autistic people.
“Hopefully it will also revolutionise outcomes for the people accessing services and ensure that no one else has to experience what Oliver did.
“It is amazing news that over one million people have already begun their training journey with the Oliver McGowan package and we urge anyone in health and care to make this training a top priority, and to get in touch with us as soon as possible if they need any assistance.”
You can download the brochure here.
For more information, please call freephone 0800 310 2300 or send an e-mail to info@firstresponsetraining.com.