Bracelet identifying child as Deaf?

AlleyCat said:
I have to agree with this. I think the phone number would suffice.
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I also think it is a bad idea to have your child name on their cloth so everyone can see it! I read somewhere it put a child at risk, as they will think a person know them when they call their name and will more likely to go off with a stranger.
 
Mountain Man said:
Yes, he's in pre-school.

My wife had the idea of a bracelet that simply read "American Sign Language". That could be sufficient to let someone know that it's his primary form of communication without explicitly identifying him as Deaf.
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If there is space on the bracelet I'd put both ie "Deaf uses American Sign Language" .... in emergency situations you want to be clear that the child is deaf ... there are a number of people who CAN hear (and understand spoken language) but who use Sign & writing to communicate with others.

If I was getting a bracelet made I'd have it say:
"JOHNNY is Deaf & uses
American Sign Language
call: (111)111-1111"


Most medical alert type bracelets will accommodate this amount of text. If you needed to condense it you might say:
"Deaf Sign Language User (111)111-1111"
 
Mountain Man said:
My wife and I have an interesting question: our kids wear bright, red allergy bracelets that identify foods they're allergic to so in case they happen to get separated from us, folks won't accidentally kill them by giving them a snack. My wife was wondering about giving my Deaf son a customized bracelet that reads "Deaf - ASL Only". He's still young and not particularly expressive, and some people don't even realize he's Deaf because he'll grin and nod when they talk to him. This way, if, God forbid, he got separated from us at a museum or the zoo, at least the staff would know to find a signer to communicate with him.

Is this a totally weird or offensive idea?
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At the end of the day, it's your decision... Your children, you do whatever you feel is necessary to keep them safe and yourselves comfortable.

I agree with points made for "pro" and "con" with an I.D bracelet or dog tags...

You can only do what feels right to you.
 
posts from hell said:
"Oh look, there's a deaf child. How cute....."

That's why.

I actually had a hard time coming up with to the point explanation of why. So I just posted that. And the above quote is as simple as I can get.

Also not to mention; a parent should be responsible on their child's whereabouts all the times. If the child was kidnapped I doubt the kidnapper will even spend the time trying to communicate with the child much.
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I understand what you're getting at but how is it different from a diabetic or heart patient who "should" wear medi alert bracelets...

And yes parents should always know where their children are - I agree 100% there :)
 
Kalima01 said:
At the end of the day, it's your decision... Your children, you do whatever you feel is necessary to keep them safe and yourselves comfortable.

I agree with points made for "pro" and "con" with an I.D bracelet or dog tags...

You can only do what feels right to you.
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I'm aware of that. I was just wanting a broader perspective. My primary concern was that it would be culturally offensive to Deaf folks, but that doesn't appear to be the case.
 
Great idea

I really like the idea of having some sort of bracelet or charm identifying the person as someone who requires some alternate method of communicating.

Some people aren't bright enough to understand that people who are deaf or HOH may not hear them no matter how loudly or how slowly they speak.

Also, lack of response to being spoken to does not automatically make some people think of deafness. I think a lot of hearing people just consider the person who isn't responding as being rude or shy.

As for the discussion on being knocked out cold ... I am a nurse. One of the first things that I am taught when finding a person non-responsive is to ask them if they're OK while doing something that should invite a response such as rubbing them on the sternum, flapping their feet, shaking their shoulder. If they are non-verbal, I don't immediately think they are deaf, I immediately begin to think of problems that cause altered mental status; stroke, overdose, head trauma, hypoglycemia, etc. Knowing that a patient is deaf could be very helpful and may prevent unnecessary medical testing and/or treatments.

I think a bracelet with a first name, mode of communication, and contact phone number is a fabulous idea. If you invent one, I want one for my HOH daughter and myself (an HOH RN).
 
Mountain Man said:
I'm aware of that. I was just wanting a broader perspective. My primary concern was that it would be culturally offensive to Deaf folks, but that doesn't appear to be the case.
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As someone who's Hoh/Deaf and doesn't really see being Deaf as a "disability" per say ... I'm not at all offended about someone putting a medical bracelet on a child in this case... actually I think it's a smart thing to do :) (until they're old enough to be able to communicate their needs via reading, writing, picture drawing, etc)

I think that it's important to take "reasonable precautionary measures" to make sure that if a pre-literate (reading AND writing), non-oral CHILD is somehow separated &/or are injured etc. that those who find them/are attending to their medical needs are able to be made aware that the child IS deaf and uses Sign Language to communicate.

It's every parent/caregivers nightmare for a child to somehow slip away (and they can be QUICK!) ... the reality is that while it's nice to "hope" that you never "need" the bracelet because they never get lost/hurt etc - the TRUTH is that it's far safer and more responsible to realize that horrible accidents etc CAN happen, and take measures to help make sure that IF something happens, the information is there for the person trying to help :)
 
I would put bracelet on my child if it came with a GPS tracking device.

I grew up without a bracelet identifying me as Deaf and I was fine. Same with my brother. I think hearing people will survive after feeling stupid for not realizing the child is deaf after trying to talk to them.
 
shel90 said:
I would put bracelet on my child if it came with a GPS tracking device.

I grew up without a bracelet identifying me as Deaf and I was fine. Same with my brother. I think hearing people will survive after feeling stupid for not realizing the child is deaf after trying to talk to them.
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I think the issues isn't as much hearing people "feeling stupid" as much as if the child is injured - the hearing/deaf person who finds them/ is treating them (EMTs, Drs, etc) being able to rule out an injury that's impacted the child's ability to hear, comprehend language and or speak.

I'm guessing that there are GPS/ Medical alert type bracelets that are available (or could easily be customized to be both).
 
Road ID® USA's #1 Source for Runners ID, Cycling ID & Medical ID Tags

Something like this could be used. Very customizable.

I wear one. My mom & dad always have theirs on; dad's helped after his last motorcycle wreck. One sis has one & wears sometimes; other sis doesn't have one I think.

As he gets older, I will consider one for my son.

I have also seen customizable temporary tatoos you can put on an arm w/ contact info. Good idea for large theme parks, etc. http://www.safetytat.com/ Looking thru their offerings, there are some speficially for "nonverbal."

I took DS to the zoo and a water park this weekend & it makes me kind of nuts in these large places where we can get separated. He's verbal, but sometimes can be hard to understand, & when overwhelmed, might not be able to tell someone my name.
 
shel90 said:
I would put bracelet on my child if it came with a GPS tracking device.

I grew up without a bracelet identifying me as Deaf and I was fine. Same with my brother. I think hearing people will survive after feeling stupid for not realizing the child is deaf after trying to talk to them.
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Just be careful of what you say.

If more people say they would want GPS on people, the more it shows that there is a demand for embedded GPS chips in people.

Then we all will be required to have one.
 
posts from hell said:
Just be careful of what you say.

If more people say they would want GPS on people, the more it shows that there is a demand for embedded GPS chips in people.

Then we all will be required to have one.
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I know...it sucks, doesnt it?
 
Am I the only one who thinks GPS trackers are kind of creepy? Sure they would be great in the event that someone was kidnapped, but look at the flip side, People will always know where you are and what you are doing. I'm not talking conspiracy, but still, I have no desire to have someone looking at where I (or my child) is at any moment in time.

Just my opinion, there are many positives to this, but I can't get over the creep factor xD

To the OP, I think the idea of putting it on your child until they can write basic information is a great idea! Then once the child can, let them choose if they want to wear it or not. I don't think it is necessary to have the "Oh, look, its a deaf person!" if the child doesn't want that kind of attention :P
 
If you've got a smart phone, you're walking around with a GPS tracker, unless you've disabled that function.

Those RoadID bracelets are pretty cool. They certainly have a nice assortment of choices. None of them would stand out as saying "Hey, this is a deaf child!" The engraving is small enough to be subtle. And could be put on a shoelace rather than on a bracelet, which is pretty neat.

There were a few times when I was a kid that my mom would have appreciated having a tracker on me! I always wandered back, but she said I was always the kid who was curious to see what was around the next corner, and fearless to boot, so I did wander further afield than she would have liked every so often.
 
The advantage to some GPS tracker bracelets is that they are only removed with a special key. THe child can't take it off, and anybody making away with the child will think twice.
 
Beach girl said:
If you've got a smart phone, you're walking around with a GPS tracker, unless you've disabled that function.

Those RoadID bracelets are pretty cool. They certainly have a nice assortment of choices. None of them would stand out as saying "Hey, this is a deaf child!" The engraving is small enough to be subtle. And could be put on a shoelace rather than on a bracelet, which is pretty neat.

There were a few times when I was a kid that my mom would have appreciated having a tracker on me! I always wandered back, but she said I was always the kid who was curious to see what was around the next corner, and fearless to boot, so I did wander further afield than she would have liked every so often.
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Plus that RoadID is good for everyone espeically deaf people - for example if you end up in car accident and you are non responsive. The ID tells the first responders that the personell is deaf and has phone number to contact parents, brother, sister, friend, wife or husband. I have a FIXX necklace ID on its way, just to be on the safe side :)
 
JClarke said:
Plus that RoadID is good for everyone espeically deaf people - for example if you end up in car accident and you are non responsive. The ID tells the first responders that the personell is deaf and has phone number to contact parents, brother, sister, friend, wife or husband. I have a FIXX necklace ID on its way, just to be on the safe side :)
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I am going to buy one of the bracelets.
 
I have a medicalert bracelet and it states that i'm deaf and wear hearing aids and lipread as well as has my allergies on it as well as the ID number to contact medicalert for the rest of my info ..better to be safe then sorry in my own opinion...I am a Nurse and deaf/hoh people have been mistaken for more serious injuries because medical professionals think we aren't responding due to an injury rather than just being deaf
 
hcarroll36 said:
I think a bracelet with a first name, mode of communication, and contact phone number is a fabulous idea. If you invent one, I want one for my HOH daughter and myself (an HOH RN).
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There is a company that makes custom silicon bracelets, but there is a limit to how much text you can put on one. I'll ask my wife for the name of the company and post it here (unless she sees this thread and posts it herself, but I'm not sure if she has an account here).

Edit: Actually, never mind. Those Road ID's are very cool.

I was thinking of one that says:

MY NAME IS [CHILD'S NAME].
I AM DEAF AND USE
AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE.​
 
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