Settlement Agreed for US Deaf patients

A federal judge in ST. LOUIS, USA has approved settlement of a lawsuit filed on behalf of more than 1,000 deaf Missourians over mental health services for the deaf reports BND.com (11/05/12).

U.S. District Judge Matt Whitworth approved the settlement Thursday in Jefferson City in a suit filed by the Missouri Association of the Deaf and 13 named plaintiffs. Attorneys for the plaintiffs say about 20 percent of deaf persons in need of mental health services are children.

The suit accused the state of violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide adequate mental health care for the deaf. Among many provisions, the settlement requires greater availability of sign language interpreters and development of outpatient and inpatient centers staffed with clinicians and case managers trained in aiding the deaf.

Deaf users campaign for video relay service

After a decade of having their needs neglected by telecoms providers, leaders of the UK's deaf community have written an open letter published in today's Times newspaper writes Jack Schofield for ZEDNET (11/05/12). 


They are campaigning for a universally-accessible video relay service of the sort that the Americans have operated successfully for the past 10 years. This would enable British Sign Language users to make and receive calls at any time, with no pre-booking, and at no additional cost over a normal phone contract.


The revised EU Electronic Communications Framework, rubber stamped by UK Government, sets out a legal requirement to ensure that disabled end-users enjoy access to telecommunications that are functionally equivalent to those enjoyed by other end-users. 


Unfortunately, the UK government appears to have done nothing substantial to meet this requirement for deaf users, simply handing off the problem to telecoms suppliers such as BT, O2, Vodafone, Three, Talk Talk, Virgin Media, Everything Everywhere and BSkyB.


The deaf organisations say they talked to communications minister Ed Vaizey, and that in November, he "repeatedly called on the telecommunications industry to work with the deaf community to find solutions which meet their communications needs". 


In their letter to The Times, they tell the telecoms providers: "You have failed to meet with us in open forum in response to the Minister’s request and your silence has been deeply disappointing," and that "Positive action by the industry is long overdue. You are delaying the introduction of modern relay services, and exacerbating the isolation and disadvantage which is faced by deaf people who are denied equal access to telecommunications."


The UK does have an experimental video relay service (VRS) called MyFriend, but it requires pre-booking of calls. However, this is a pilot project run from the University of Bristol with the financial backing of the EU. It may well close this summer when the EU funding runs out, and it seems extremely unlikely that the UK government would, if asked, stump up the trivial amount of money required to establish as a permanent service. 


In parliament, Vaizey said, as an aside: "I have been struck by the lack of engagement from business and telecoms companies, which is unbelievably frustrating. In that respect, we would, for example, like to have video technology that enables deaf people to use sign language, and I have told all the telecoms operators, 'Please come to me with a cost-effective solution,' but they have not done that. Eventually, of course, I will have to regulate through Ofcom to make them do that, but it would be so much simpler if they came to me and did it." (17 Jan 2012 : Column 245WH)


The organisations backing the campaign include the UK Council on Deafness, TAG (Telecommunications Action Group), the British Deaf Association, the National Deaf Children’s Society, Sense, the National Association of Deafened People, and the Royal Association for Deaf People, as well as companies and individuals.


This week is Deaf Awareness Week in the UK, and it continues until Sunday, 13 May.

Deaf Awareness Week 7-12 May

During Deaf Awareness Week (May 7-13) Action on Hearing Loss are highlighting the barriers facing patients who are deaf and calling on local health services to commission interpreting services that use only appropriately qualified sign language interpreters reports The Belfast Telegraph (07/05/12).
New research shows that 41% of surveyed people who use British Sign Language (BSL) as their first language have left a health appointment feeling confused about their medical condition, because the interpretation was not of an adequate standard.
A total of 68% said they have asked for an interpreter to be booked for a GP appointment, but did not get one.
People who are deaf have the legal right to experience the same level of service as other patients in the UK.
So, to avoid unnecessary confusion, anxiety or embarrassment, it is vital that they can access communication support best-suited to their needs.
To sign our petition calling for local health services to use only interpreters registered with the National Registers of Communications Professionals (NRCP), which shows that they meet the required standard for communicating essential medical information, please click here.

Deaf Action will be taking an information stall around Edinburgh and the Lothians to mark Deaf Awareness Week, which starts on Monday reports The Scotsman (04/05/12).

It will be at Gala Bingo, Meadowbank, on Thursday, and at the Livingston, Musselburgh and Danderhall libraries on Friday.

Staff will be handing out information and answering questions about services and hearing aids or equipment.

There will also be a British Sign Language taster session at the charity’s offices in Albany Street on Wednesday afternoon.

For more information visit www.deafaction.org

The East Sussex Hearing Resource Centre has a programme of events planned for this week to raise awareness of the hidden disability that is deafness reports The Sussex Express (05/05/12)

On Friday afternoon, there will be a chance to relax and listen to some poetry, a short story or perhaps an extract from a novel. A member of the Read Aloud scheme, run by the library service, will be visiting the Resource Centre to entertain everyone. A loop system will be used for the benefit of hearing aid wearers with this facility. All are welcome. The session starts at 2.30pm and should last for an hour.

For any further information contact Teresa Davis, 8 St Leonard’s Road, Eastbourne, BN21 3UH. Tel: 01323 722505 or email: teresa@eshrc.org.uk

Deaf Embassy dream

This is the vision for an ‘embassy’ to the world’s deaf community being planned by a Preston charity reports the Lancashire Evening Post (24/04/12).

Deafway is proposing to build the centre at its base on Brockholes Brow in Fishwick which it believes will attract members of the deaf community from across the world.

It will house art galleries and a theatre to show the work of deaf people and provide facilities for people attending courses at the centre. Chief executive David Hynes said the striking design of the proposed building was “a statement of intent” by the charity.

He said: “If you look at any other group in the world which has its own language and its own culture, it has a country it is based in and within other countries there are embassies to promote that culture and language.

“The deaf community globally has as rich a culture and language as any other community and yet it has nowhere to positively promote that, it needs an embassy as a place to do that. What we are planning here is a building which deaf people from across the world will come to and be proud of to celebrate their culture.”

Plans, drawn up by Fulwood-based architects MCK Associates, will be submitted as a formal planning application to Preston Council in the coming weeks.

The charity has appointed Philippa Merricks as an ‘animateur’ for the project to develop projects to promote deaf culture from the centre. It is hosting a number of events at the centre.

Deafway will hold a public exhibition at Brockholes Brow between 1pm and 6pm next Thursday.

Deaf-blind speed skater to represent Canada

Ottawa athlete Kevin Frost almost seems more concerned with raising awareness of impaired speed skating than winning gold medals reports Metro Canada (02/05/12).

The deaf-blind speed skater who suffers from Usher Syndrome will represent Canada at the Impaired Skating Championship in Scotland on May 12 and hopes to help raise awareness about getting the sport recognized as an official Paralympic sport.

More countries need to practise impaired skating before the International Paralympic Committee will consider adopting it. “If I can get another 10 people who come from different countries, that’s a gold medal to me.”

He has been training for seven years, but it hasn’t been easy. He describes his vision as looking through two plastic straws and sound has to hit 90 decibels in order for him to hear it. Yet that doesn’t stop him from training and enjoying other sports.

“At the beginning it was very difficult, but with anything in life, when you do 1,000 laps you get a hang of things,” said Frost in the middle of a training session at the Bob MacQuarrie Recreation Complex in Orleans.

The race in Scotland is a key step in his mission to get countries, including Canada, on board to raise awareness about impaired skating, attract new skaters, and get it sanctioned as a sport in the Paralympics.

To help fund his accommodations in Scotland, Toppers Pizza at 5497 Jeanne D’Arc Boulevard in Orleans is throwing a fundraiser Wednesday and will donate $4 for every large pizza sold.