A Newcastle University student has hit out at the barriers people with autism and learning disabilities can face when heading to the GP.
Lauren Gilbert, 21, is disability officer at the university's Students' Union. They are autistic, and also have diagnoses of ADHD and Long Covid. They said that when doctors see the word "autism" in medical records, the change in manner can be "blatant".
Lauren's testimony comes as both the North East Autism Society (NEAS) and Healthwatch Newcastle are looking to investigate how the health and care system works for people with autism and learning disabilities. NEAS is soon to launch its Everyday Equality campaign highlighting how unequal access to healthcare is among the reasons for estimates that autistic people have a mortality rate 51% higher than in the wider population.
