Risk-taking for clients with learning disabilities

The following paper examines conditions and influences that precipitate or inhibit risk-taking by nurses working with clients with learning disabilities. Practitioners may experience tensions between facilitating the independence of clients and avoiding negligence. Thus there is an incentive to not allow clients to take many risks. Clients who are denied the dignity of risk lose opportunities to experience ordinary living. More subtly, individuals can also be subjected to services that are relatively benign but also paternalistic.