« Cochlear implant hearing devices | Main | Gallaudet students work with federal agency to improve transportation safety near campus »
November 23, 2005
Hospital reaches out to hearing-impaired patients
In partnership with the Canadian Hearing Society (CHS), the Sudbury Regional Hospital is participating in a pilot project to improve service and communication with emergency patients who are deaf and communicate using sign language.
By video-linking patients with CHS interpreters, emergency department (ED) staff are hoping to improve service to the deaf community.
"Communication is a key factor in being able to deliver the best patient care, not just from a treatment standpoint, but from a bedside one as well," said Brenda Fraser, project lead and Nurse Clinician for the ED.
"Being sick or injured is stressful enough without the added hurdle of not being able to understand or be understood," she said.
As part of the initiative, ED nurses worked with the CHS on how to communicate with the patient while waiting for the interpreter to connect and what to do once the connection had been made, receiving tips such as looking at the patient when speaking, trying to keep the patient upright if possible and not blocking the screen for the patient.
Source: http://www.northernlife.ca/localnewsarticle.asp?view=99831
Posted by 4HL on November 23, 2005 3:02 PM
Send this article to a friend