Health Care Standards for People with Hearing Loss
It seems that there are currently no universal standards regarding
the provision of health care services to people with hearing loss.
According to a presentation at the annual conference of the American
Public Health Association that may be about to change.
Representatives of Delmarva Foundation for Medical Care in Easton,
Maryland and Gallaudet University in Washington, DC have recently
drafted a set of recommendations, including the following:
1. The provider and/or healthcare organization should be responsible
for ensuring that communication does not create a barrier to the equal
access to services.
2. Providers should be familiar with interpreters and how to acquire
and assess their services.
3. Programs for educating deaf and hard-of-hearing consumers should
include topics such as how to provide a clear medical history, use of
emergency services and medications, and clear expression of needs.
4. Providers should allow additional time for assessment and
treatment, including the verification of comprehension.
5. Billing procedures should be modified so that providers can bill a
third party for interpreting services.
6. Hospitals should provide appropriate accommodations, including
interpreters, captioned TVs, and clear labeling of patient needs on the
patient's chart.
7. HCFA should consider covering the services of audiologists and
hearing devices under Medicare and Medicaid, as well as designating
deafness/hard of hearing as a complicating condition and providing
additional compensation when additional time is required to provide
services.
I'd like to see accommodations added for people with hearing loss who
DON'T use interpreters - CART and assistive listening devices. But,
other than that, I think these recommendations are a good start towards
standard health care practice for people with hearing loss.
