Health care for people with intellectual disabilities

On the 27^th November 2003, at the end of the ‘European Year for People with Disabilities’, an invitational conference -held in Rotterdam, the Netherlands- about health care for individuals with intellectual disabilities took place. The meeting was organised by NVAVG- the Netherlands Society of Physicians for persons with Intellectual Disabilities, and MAMH- ‘European Association of Intellectual Disability Medicine’, in collaboration with Erasmus MC- the department of specialist training of physicians for people with intellectual disabilities.

The aim of the meeting was to finalise and accept a European Manifesto about "Health care for people with intellectual disabilities."

This Manifesto attempts to clearly summarise the elements of adequate health care for individuals with intellectual disabilities.

We hope this Manifesto will, through stimulating governments, organisations and individuals, improve health care for people with intellectual disabilities, considering their rights as citizens, their rights to access mainstream health care and when needed, their right to access specialist care.

The manifesto is translated in several languages and more will follow. At this moment the following translations are available:

Frans Scholte, MD, MAHM President

Marijke Meijer, MD, Head of the specialist training Erasmus MC Rotterdam

Sylvia Carpenter, MD, Former MAMH President

web editor: administration@mamh.net