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PIP - MR advice please. Managing medication and using toilet
- Wendy Woo
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8 hours 38 minutes ago #305965 by Wendy Woo
PIP - MR advice please. Managing medication and using toilet was created by Wendy Woo
Hello,
I'm sorry if I'm being a bit dim here, but if there is nothing about cognitive deficiency in any of the descriptor definitions, why do health assessors refer to it so often in their reports? It is always used as a reason not to award points, as in "there is no evidence of cognitive deficiency," even when there are medical reports giving details of cognitive problems.
Is this just another example of health assessors not understanding the definitions properly/misinterpreting the information given, or am I missing something? Sorry to be pedantic - it's just that knowing all these details will be so helpful for future assessments (if I can remember them, that is!). I'm trying to educate myself in order to avoid yet another M/R for my (autistic) son, so I'm keeping notes of all the useful information I can glean from the Mods and everyone else on the forum! He isn't due another review for several years, thank goodness, and I suppose everything might have changed by then, but I feel that gathering as much information as I can will do no harm.
Thanks in advance and best wishes to everyone,
Wendy Woo
I'm sorry if I'm being a bit dim here, but if there is nothing about cognitive deficiency in any of the descriptor definitions, why do health assessors refer to it so often in their reports? It is always used as a reason not to award points, as in "there is no evidence of cognitive deficiency," even when there are medical reports giving details of cognitive problems.
Is this just another example of health assessors not understanding the definitions properly/misinterpreting the information given, or am I missing something? Sorry to be pedantic - it's just that knowing all these details will be so helpful for future assessments (if I can remember them, that is!). I'm trying to educate myself in order to avoid yet another M/R for my (autistic) son, so I'm keeping notes of all the useful information I can glean from the Mods and everyone else on the forum! He isn't due another review for several years, thank goodness, and I suppose everything might have changed by then, but I feel that gathering as much information as I can will do no harm.
Thanks in advance and best wishes to everyone,
Wendy Woo
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- BIS
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5 hours 49 minutes ago #305978 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic PIP - MR advice please. Managing medication and using toilet
Hi Wendy Woo
I moved your post, just so it didn't get muddled up with Sarah's post. I know it was her post that triggered your question, but it was going to get confusing to answer both of you about two different issues.
You're not being pedantic at all, but I can only tell you what I think, rather than my answer being based on fact. If I remember correctly you had a 15-page report for your son, compiled by experts which the DWP ignored. In my view that was deliberate. They either didn't read the report or they decided that they knew better than the experts who have supported your son over many years. It's a pattern we see over and over again. The assessors are 'qualified' in their own fields, and they are 'qualified' to carry out PIP assessments - but it's quite possible to have an assessor with very little experience in understanding more than the basics of certain conditions. Many people with loved ones with autism have been incensed when a report says "they answered every question and there was no sign of cognitive impairment". Too often assessors have missed the fact - that is the impairment - that the claimant may have given the answers they thought they were expected to give without any deep understanding of what they were saying. (I know one of my relations with autism tried to say that he would ring 999 if he needed help. Completely untrue because he would never phone a stranger whatever the circumstances - but he gave the answer that he thought was correct). Assessors simply don't have the time to work out this sort of thing and if you're not familiar with the many different nuances of a condition like autism, it is not surprising that so many horrible and in my view unfair decisions are made.
Whatever changes happen with PIP I think we can probably predict that many claimants will have to fight the ignorance of the people administering the assessments.
BIS
I moved your post, just so it didn't get muddled up with Sarah's post. I know it was her post that triggered your question, but it was going to get confusing to answer both of you about two different issues.
You're not being pedantic at all, but I can only tell you what I think, rather than my answer being based on fact. If I remember correctly you had a 15-page report for your son, compiled by experts which the DWP ignored. In my view that was deliberate. They either didn't read the report or they decided that they knew better than the experts who have supported your son over many years. It's a pattern we see over and over again. The assessors are 'qualified' in their own fields, and they are 'qualified' to carry out PIP assessments - but it's quite possible to have an assessor with very little experience in understanding more than the basics of certain conditions. Many people with loved ones with autism have been incensed when a report says "they answered every question and there was no sign of cognitive impairment". Too often assessors have missed the fact - that is the impairment - that the claimant may have given the answers they thought they were expected to give without any deep understanding of what they were saying. (I know one of my relations with autism tried to say that he would ring 999 if he needed help. Completely untrue because he would never phone a stranger whatever the circumstances - but he gave the answer that he thought was correct). Assessors simply don't have the time to work out this sort of thing and if you're not familiar with the many different nuances of a condition like autism, it is not surprising that so many horrible and in my view unfair decisions are made.
Whatever changes happen with PIP I think we can probably predict that many claimants will have to fight the ignorance of the people administering the assessments.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
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