The reliance of some hospitals on video remote interpreting (VRI Technology) as a way to comply with the “reasonable accommodation” portion of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), has made it more difficult to access medical information, some deaf individuals say, according to an article in The Charlotte Observer.
Citing difficulties such as unreliable WiFi, small screens, and hard-to-move devices, several people quoted in the article said they had been told that in-person American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters were not always available. In some cases, interpreters could be scheduled ahead of time, but not necessarily in an emergency situation.
Jared Allebest, a deaf attorney, said that, “since the introduction of the technology, hospitals have been less willing to bring in in-person interpreters.” He has filed several lawsuits on behalf of deaf clients in Utah who were not offered ASL interpreters.
To read the story in its entirety, please click here.
Source: The Charlotte Observer
Hospitals also do not seem to be aware of hearing problems in their aged patients. My 95 year old mother was an example of this. She was hospitalized after a fall, but was held in the ER for 16 hours due to a bed shortage. She has no hearing in one ear and poor hearing even with a hearing aid in the other. After preparing her for an eventual move to another hospital, I left for my home nearer to that hospital. At midnight I received a call saying they had found her a bed in their hospital. When I arrived at m, she was sure that she had been kidnapped(because she had not been moved in an ambulance) and was not cooperating with nursing staff. Her hearing aid was not in her ear. As soon as I put it in and explained that they had found her a bed, she relaxed and said, I guess I should cooperate now? She was cooperative and following directions as long as I was in the room to direct staff to speak slowly into her good ear. Despite a sign on the wall, staff repeatedly came in the room and started speaking, ignoring the fact that her good ear did not face the door. On her second night she complained of pain in her broken wrist and was so oversedated that she didn t fully wake up until 3 pm the next day. Sedation is a good way to deal with a patient if you don t want to spend the extra time making sure they understand what is going on. As our population ages, hospitals are going to have to find ways to deal with aging patients that can t hear well but also do not use technologies that could help.