Early deaths of people with learning disabilities 'shocking' - easy English version

This is Sara Pickard. She works for the charity Mencap Cymru. She lives in Cardiff

This is an easy English version of the story. For the standard English version, click here.

We know that people with a learning disability get worse healthcare than other people.

A report said that people with learning disabilities often do not live as long as people without learning disabilities.

It said in Wales the most common age of death for people with a learning disability is about 67 years old.

But the most common age of death for people without a learning disability is about 87 years old.

This is 20 years longer.

Another report said that nearly four out of 10 deaths of people with learning disabilities in England were avoidable.

Avoidable means that it did not need to happen.

This means that with the right care these people could have lived.

Many people say this is wrong and things must change.

One mum told us that she thinks people with learning disabilities are not treated as important.

She said this was very wrong.

The Welsh government said it wanted to make healthcare better for people with learning disabilities so they can live longer.

Sara Pickard is also a councillor. This means local people voted for her to represent them and their community

Sara Pickard has Down's syndrome. She said life can feel like a hurdles race.

She said: "Hurdles come up in life and I'm jumping over each one and nothing is going to stop me."

Sara said she has good healthcare.

But she knows other people with learning disabilities who do not get good healthcare.

Sara said it was shocking that people with learning disabilities often die earlier than other people.

She said people who make decisions need to listen more to people with learning disabilities.

What are annual health checks?

In Wales, GPs must invite people with learning disabilities to have a health check every year, even when they feel well.

Annual health checks are meant to help people with learning disabilities stay healthy.

But Sara said they do not always help everybody.

She said healthcare staff can help people with learning disabilities understand what is happening when they go to the doctor or hospital.

Why do people with learning disabilities die younger?

People are working hard to find out why people with learning disabilities die younger.

This is Dr Dawn Cavanagh with her son Jack who is 22 years old

Jack has a severe learning disability and lives in a care home.

This means he lives in a home with carers who look after him all the time.

Dr Cavanagh said she was worried about Jack when he was ill.

She said she told people that he was ill but they did not listen to her.

Jack went to hospital three weeks later with a very serious illness.

Dr Cavanagh said Jack is better but it took a long time.

She said healthcare staff only saw Jack's learning disability and not that he was ill.

This meant doctors did not give Jack the right help when he needed it.

Dr Cavanagh said people with learning disabilities are often treated badly.

She said "that tells me is that my son's health and life do not matter".

Stuart Todd is a professor at the University of South Wales

Stuart Todd said some things at the doctors are now better for people with learning disabilities.

But he wondered what it was like for people who had to go to hospital in an emergency.

He said there should be a plan to make sure doctors and hospitals work together to help people with learning disabilities.

Professor Todd is doing new research about the care at the end of life for adults with learning disabilities.

He said that people with learning disabilities sometimes die without the care they need.

The Welsh government is in charge of health care in Wales.

They said they have a plan to help people with learning disabilities live longer.

The Welsh government also said they teach people in hospitals and doctors' surgeries about learning disabilities so they can make care better.

The Welsh government said they were working with a group of people with learning disabilities to make healthcare better.