Do you think Healthcare professionals should learn basic ASL ....

Gobae said:
They cause communication problems regardless if the person is deaf or hearing.
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ALL of them? Okay, even given that your statistic is correct there's still a lot of grey area between "happy no-problem communication" and "splinted with IVs and closed eyes." Just being emotionally upset over being hurt or ill, even with no restrictions on signing, can cause difficulties in communication, and quintuple that for people who have only taken one limited class in sign. Not to mention that EMTs are not the only people in this equation.

I can't think of a situation more important than medical with the exception of legal where as perfect understanding as can possibly be achieved, MUST be achieved between a deaf client and a hearing professional.

And hell yeah, Reba, I'd be all in favor of making a first-aid course a required part of an ITP in fact. (Would have done me a lot more good than that stupid health class I had to take for the degree.) It's a lot easier to teach someone first-aid than it is a whole new language!
 
Gobae said:
Dixie - I though you were a medical professional of some sort. I was paying attention to how you were using terminology in some of your other posts.

Anyway, I was an EMT (NYS EMT-D, OH EMT-B, & NR EMT-A) for 10 years and one of the MAIN reasons I took sign language classes was so I could communicate with Deaf patients; because I found the basic instruction in the EMT manual incredibly stupid.

Our EMT book suggested we carry a card with us that said "Are you deaf?". That was it! No suggestions about how to actually communicate with the patient! As if it was just enough to know they were deaf; that was good enough.

Reba said:

Yes, all those things are very true and your point is well taken. But 80% of EMT calls are actually non-life threatening and don't qualify as "True Emergencies". That would leave lots of opportunity to successfully use sign with patients.

ASLGal Said:

Outline what specifically you want to do and what things would be needed. Then pester them. "How's the ASL program coming?", "When will this be implemented?", "What issues are stopping this from happening?", "What's the process used for this to go forward?". Then tackle some of the issues and roadblocks they come up with, and go back to them and show them you've solved some of their problems, and once again ask those same questions OVER and OVER. (BTW notice the questions don't ask why "they" aren't doing something. It's a subtle change that makes the questions less confrontational.)
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Im a former EMT-B (AR) and NREMTB - which is sort of redundant because the AR DoH uses the NREMT exam as their written exams in certifying EMTs and Medics in the state.

I left the ambulance because my hearing deteriorated rapidly over six months and I took it upon myself to get out of the ambulance before I put someones life in greater danger due to not being able to take BPs for V/S.
 
The professionals should learn some sign language like 60 percent. I was in the hospital for 3 months. I had a Staph aureus infection in my heart - I don't know how I got this happened - maybe from a food stuck in my gum that got an infection.

I cannot talk to anyone included my family because of the oxygen tube in my throat - Yuck! I was shocked that I cannot communicate them so I had a pen and a notepad, but it wasn't helpful because I was very weak. I thought that the hospital has some interpreters by the law so I was wrong.

I happened had a male nurse who knows signs very well because he has two deaf little kids. He was a great nurse, but he worked only for the weekends. Unfortunately, he plans to quit and transfers his job to a SkyStar helicopter for a hospital emergency - he got tired of his stress in the intensive care. Another nurse knows a little sign. I taught her some signs. She was very nice. It was better than nothing.

After a few months of the hospital, a deaf woman gave me a business card for an emergency interpreter. I was so surprised because no one ever told me anything like that even in the hospital or a doctor. What a pissy!

I don't want to mention about suing the hospital for failing to request an interpreter. I was told that the real problem is that an interpreter has to wait for a doctor to show up and to see me in the patient room - like waiting for 4 hours or next day. Don't you think that the interpreter is standing at me to wait for my doctor to show up in four hours or longer? Is there a way to solve this problem? My doctor had to operate his several patients for so many hours everyday. He cannot take a break otherwise one of his patients dies.

Oh, I hate the ambulance ride for my first time in my life. I was transferred from the hospital to a nursing home for my rehab exercise treatment. The roads are bad a lot of bumping in the winter - I think that the ambulance's springs are screwed up. (That surprised me.) I wore a seat-belt on a wheeled-stretcher that got me stuck with my underwear awhile bumping roads, and it was very uncomfortable. What can I say about it? Nothing!

Am I off the subject?
 
webexplorer said:
Am I off the subject?
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I don't think so. I mentioned that if hospital workers don't know sign at least they must know the ADA rules and that deaf patients are entitled to interpreters, and to my mind this is an example of why. At least someone could have been there who knew sign, even if it no hospital workers knew any. It's a stopgap measure until ASL becomes a more common language among hearing people in all professions.
 
Dixie said:
Reba said:

Yes, all those things are very true and your point is well taken. But 80% of EMT calls are actually non-life threatening and don't qualify as "True Emergencies". That would leave lots of opportunity to successfully use sign with patients.
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Gobae said that, not me.
 
I can't think of a situation more important than medical with the exception of legal where as perfect understanding as can possibly be achieved, MUST be achieved between a deaf client and a hearing professional.
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I couldn't agree more.

Are you thinking I'm suggesting that EMT's should learn sign so they don't need terps? I'm not suggesting anything like that at all. I'm not sure exactly where our conflict is happening.

I DO think it would be very useful for them to know enough ASL to be able to be able to ask the "SAMPLE" questions. I know EMT's in New York, NY have the option of taking basic Spanish (focused on this topic) to do this, and IIRC they already offer a similar program for EMT's in ASL in Rochester, NY.
 
I am happy to see more and more great discussion on this topic.

Don't get me started on ignorance of ADA and state laws.
Even when you attempt to show and tell people what is required you get that "deer in the headlight look"

I think all of you are realizing what I am talking about implementing.
I wish I would have been clearer in my beginning post.

A StopGap measure - exactly. Filling the gap somewhat to better serve our Deaf/DeafBlind community. That is what we want. What our goal is.

We will not be with the person for hours (usually) we need to be able to communicate better and understand responses in a quick manner.

When I am off work or any of the others who are ASL are off there is no one to communicate and fill that gap between scene and hospital or scene and jail or whatever comes next until a certified interpreter arrives.

There have been too many horror stories where people have had no clue what is happening and why these strangers are holding onto them or sticking them with something or handcuffing them. A few minutes to a Deaf/DeafBlind person (anyone really) can be an eternity until someone can communicate what is going on around them and to them.

I always start my communication with - not interpreter me - SSP only - I can help until interpreter arrives.... just this quick communication has put so many immediately at ease. A person in crisis but more at ease with the person helping or authority figure makes for an easier contact.

Thanks thanks thanks for all the great input on this.
Better training for Police, Fire, and EMT is a passion for me.
 
Gobae said:
Are you thinking I'm suggesting that EMT's should learn sign so they don't need terps?
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No no, that thing I said about medical situations wasn't aimed at you, it was just a general comment I thought to make based on the discussion.

This is not to say at all that I don't think healthcare professionals should learn ASL, but I think there are other considerations that are equally important. For example, the ADA stuff like we were saying.

Also, in the context of deaf education I get asked a lot "don't deaf people really like to read?" Which makes me realize that not everyone knows that not all deaf people can easily understand written English (or at all in some cases), and writing back and forth -- even in a non-emergency situation -- might not be a communication option. That bit of knowledge would also help. Same goes with "all deaf people can lipread." I'm not saying all hearing medical professionals think this, but I'm just thinking of things I hear ALL THE TIME from hearing people and so I assume they must come up in medical situations.

So going off that, maybe the class ought to be a bit of a combination of "survival ASL" and common misconceptions/misunderstandings about deaf people.
 
I am sure that some time ago my hubby got an emial form someone that they were testing some VRS type intp. service in one of the hosptials here in the US. I will have to ask him. I remby him showing me the video clip of it. hmmmmmmmmmm. Have to look for it. All I know is..............could have used it when My daughter was in the hospital...................by the way............in the end.........My husband got written apology from the hospital becuase I called and told them that if it ever happened again I wasn't going to complain to them, I'd complain to an attorney.
 
ASLGAL said:
I'm reviving an older topic here but one that is a very important struggle.

A firefighter and I are trying to get this very thing implemented in our city right now. The PD and FD officers need this type of training badly.
The bottom line seems to be money and legal liability to the city.
We have a certified interpreter on board and will do the classes for an extremely reasonable fee but everytime we bring it to the city we get the same reaction.
What a great idea and then nothing.

Any ideas?

We have thought about sending out a call to our deaf community and having them all show up at a council meeting and demand that their communication needs be addressed.
(of course, living in a small city, it would take about a second for them to figure out who orchestrated it - and would we have he-- to pay)
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I've always thought it was a good idea for people in any business or organization to learn some ASL, especially when there's a high number of deaf people in the community.

However, there are a lot of legal issues involved and more deaf people are becoming more anal about the interpreting issue.

If they learn sign language, it would be beneficial if the deaf person was willing to cooperate and be patience with the communication process. If that deaf person decided to be anal, then "I'm not talking until I get a CERTIFIED interpreter here!" That's the problem.
 
good point vampy - but the idea is to be there to do basic phrases and what not until a certified interpreter could be placed to interpret professionally. Like for instance a deaf person comes into the ER needing stitches because they accidentally cut there wrist with a knife. To a nurse that doesnt know basic sign this might look like a suicide attempt and the deaf person is treated as a mental patient instead of what they really are - a mentally stable patient that had an accident nothing more. With some basic signs and such the whole snafu might be more likely to be avoided in the first place such as the deaf being able to sign I CUT SELF ACCIDENT. And the RN is now aware that this isnt another suicide attempt and the proper care and treatment can begin while a certified terp is enroute to the ER to terp more detailed information such as scheduling a follow-up appointment at a clinic and proper care and maintenance of the wound site.
 
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