Free course to improve healthcare for people with intellectual disability

More than 100 international experts have contributed to a world-first online course designed to improve healthcare for people with intellectual disability. The ABLE XSeries , developed by a team of online learning specialists from The University of Queensland's UQx and The Queensland Centre for Intellectual and Developmental Disability (QCIDD), will launch on World Down Syndrome Day , Monday 21 March. The series of three free Massive Open Online Courses (MOOC) courses are designed to help those in the healthcare industry understand best practice for people with intellectual disability. Experts from 17 countries contributed to the course, which explores the complexities of health issues for people with intellectual disability, and the impact for their families, disability organisations and health professionals. United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to health Professor Dainius Puras said the course is essential to understanding and improving the status of intellectual disability healthcare worldwide. "The right to health is a fundamental part of our human rights and of our understanding of a life in dignity," he said. "The barriers of attitudes and systems experienced by people with disabilities in seeking healthcare are remarkably greater than for people without disabilities.