"Deaf Should Bring Friends/Family to Hospital, No Interpreter"
Friday September 26, 2008
In response to an article in the Concord, New Hampshire Union Leader about a hospital settlement over deaf and hard of hearing people's complaints about communication access, a hearing person asked why deaf people can't bring a friend or family member with them to the hospital and the cost of an interpreter be avoided. As part of the settlement, there was a monetary award, but the important thing is the hospital agreed to set up a program to improve communication access, providing interpreters and auxiliary aids. Every time I think that the hearing world is improving its understanding of deafness, I come across something surprising like this and it is a wake-up call...
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Comments
It has contuine ignorance by doctor and not familiar about member family cannot interpreter with same time one of their silbing dying. Sort of thing were lame of story by Hosptial clueless about ADA. They knew and dont want to admitted they did not know..Even they expected to everyone to pay for interpreter fee from take their health insurance. Be carefully and watch your health insurance charge you for interpreter fee
That’s crap! That’s bull@#$*t
Deaf Pixie
It’s not just the Deaf people. An interpreter told me when she was at the hospital, she witnessed a doctor asking the five years old of a non-English speaking immigrant if he is going to interpet for her. A five year old kid?? What was the doctor thinking in the first place?
Some people just don’t have any common sense. They also don’t think about the emotional ramifications, how the friend and family may be expressing distress and the loss of privacy for the patient.
We still need to educate the public.
One more for the annals of the “Stupid Hearing Person.” Publicizing gaffes like this could sensitize society to the predicaments that they put others in because of ignorance.
Doctors aren’t exceptions. Despite their great education, I have seen some actually pull bonehead stunts like this.
Mishkazena, That’s true! I told doctor that it is wrong to force the kids to inteprreter for one of their member! if kids tell doctor wrong information and the patient died with error medicine. I thought It is outraged and cannot beleieve abuse on children to interpreter for one of their parent or grandparents. if he gave error communicate between him and doctor. who is fault. Doctor will be blame on children for error medicine information. I disagree ..
Why not we need to brought up with legisture. It is too dangerous. It will blame on him if he miscommunicate .. Why he will feel his responsible for forty years later. he is fault .. I dont agree and want to banned any kind of language children cannot hire as interpreter in medical or Hospital . Too dangerous. I have watched Law of Order TV program about Russian girl realized she is one of blame of her sister died. I think it is good example!
Sign petition to against Hosptial and Need to pass the law! To prevent blame on kid’s responsible.
Deaf do contribute to the confusions, it isn’t just hearing asking them to provide their own communicator via family, but DEAF people insisting using family and friends is a right too.
In the UK I have advocated that preference is NOT acceptable UNLESS a qualified terp is there too, basically if deaf do NOT create demand for terps, then that support isn’t going to arrive, so, do NOT provide your own communication support at ALL.
In the UK it is the duty of the service provision to provide interpreter support, no excuses. We had a case here of a deaf woman turning up at a hospital very ill, and insisting her 8 yr old daughter did all the translating !
The child got hysterical, worried about her mother, communicated badly, and the consultant decided to not allow the daughter to continue interpreting and instead sedated the mother while the hospital went to find a trained terp instead. In short the daughter could have seriously impaired her mother’s treatment.
A deaf support group attacked the hospital insisting deaf can use who they want ! NO they shouldn’t when it puts the patient in danger. While deaf can have the right to bring family in for support, hospitals must insist that they had to have qualified help that was neutral too, if only for insurance and clarity purposes, and to prevent deaf people suing them when mistakes in communication are made.
Sadly deaf are STILL NOT Using qualified help or insisting on it here, but taking their kids with them instead… that is why those without such help then cannot get what they need, simply because the demand has been undermined so provision difficult to get. Catch 22, it also allows Drs at surgeries to save money providing what they are supposed to by law, who are more than willing to encourage ‘deaf rights’ if it means they don’t have to pay for the support !
The media needs to be informed, like pgrms 20/20, Dateline and the like… It s important that the society to be update with this situation among the deaf society. It s natural for them to think we shld bring an interpreter with us be a family member as it s with the way with foreigners. They are not aware that there are no family members who really can do this for the deaf.
Totally think it s up to us, the deaf community as a whole, to educate these ignorant people who may never had any contact with deaf people before or perhaps high schools and colleges shld help educating their students a little about some of the handicaps instead of by word. Socialogy class is a start.
Can CAD, NAD and the deaf outreaches help the deaf community? It s a responsiblity on our part to educate the ingorants.n
i have been thru alot this month i had to put my daughter in rehab and they only supplied the interpeter for 4 hours a day she is out and not better i am looking for a pshcatrist and a family doctor here in miami, so she can understand them please can you help