In two separate instances reported in the USA this week, health authorities are being sued for hundreds of thousands of dollars for failing to provide sign language interpreters.
The USA has the "Americans with disabilities act" and the "Rehabilitation act" which cover much of the same ground as the Disability & Equality act of 2010 does in the U.K.
Whilst huge fines should encourage public sector organisations to take their responsibilities seriously when it comes to the DDA, it must never be forgotten that one lapse (for instance, failure to provide a sign language interpreter) could cause a problem with diagnosis or prescription, which could have serious implications for the health of the deaf patient. An excerpt from the latest version of the DDA is as follows.
"The Disability Discrimination Act
The Disability Discrimination Act (DDA) gives disabled people important rights of access to health services and social services, such as doctors' surgeries, dental surgeries, hospitals and mobile screening units.
The anti-discrimination provisions of the DDA mean that your GP should not refuse to register, or to continue treating you, because of your disability.
The DDA also means that you have a right to information about healthcare and social services in a format that is accessible to you where it is reasonable for the service provider to provide it in that format.
For example, a hospital may provide forms and explanatory literature in large print or Braille to assist people with visual impairments, or arrange for an interpreter for someone with a hearing impairment."
There are many more items on deaf issues and British Sign Language (BSL) in our website www.silent-sounds.co.uk
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