The Deaf healthcare charity SignHealth are today releasing the results of a five year study into the health of Deaf people, which they say shows that thousands of Deaf people are suffering from undiagnosed, potentially life-threatening conditions, because of unintentional neglect by the NHS.
The charity also say that this is costing the health service £30 million a year, while putting Deaf people at risk of heart attacks and strokes.
The study, which SignHealth have carried out with the University of Bristol, following a National Lottery grant, shows that doctors are failing to spot problems with the health of Deaf people on a frightening scale, and when they do diagnose conditions there’s a shocking level of ineffective treatment.
The researchers say it means a likelihood of reduced life expectancy in Deaf people.
The Sick Of It report shows that Deaf people are twice as likely to have undiagnosed high blood pressure as the rest of the population, and if they have been diagnosed it’s three times more likely that their treatment isn’t working.
More than half of Deaf people with heart disease aren’t being treated properly, and the same is true of diabetes. Deaf people with high cholesterol are half as likely as hearing people to be on medication to bring it under control.
“This is unjust, unfair and unacceptable”, says Dr Andrew Alexander, SignHealth’s medical director, “there’s clearly no intention to treat Deaf patients badly, but doctors are not doing the good job we think we are, and we’re failing a whole community, putting them at risk of heart attacks, strokes and other conditions.”
Sign Health say that “Sick Of It” identifies the causes. Doctors surgeries and hospitals are not accessible to Deaf patients, who find it difficult to make appointments and who are often left stranded in waiting rooms by staff who call them by shouting out their names.
There’s a failure to supply sign-language interpreters for consultations which means the doctor doesn’t understand the problem and can’t explain any treatment. And there is a chronic lack of health information in British Sign Language.
The researchers found that the NHS Choices website has around 900 health videos to help people make healthy choices and take some control over their own health, yet only 10 of those videos have sign language interpretation.
“There are really simple things we can do to make a huge improvement”, says Steve Powell, the CEO of SignHealth. “It’s shocking that in this internet enabled age 45% of Deaf patients have to walk into their doctor’s surgery to make an appointment, and they’re forced to communicate in ways that lead to errors and misunderstandings”.
SignHealth have drawn up Prescriptions For Change, simple steps which can be taken by health workers, NHS management and government, to improve healthcare for Deaf people.
The report is published by SignHealth at www.sick-of-it..com.
Sarah Reed
March 25, 2014
Hardly surprising having been through it myself and have seen my Deaf family members suffer dreadfully through it. At same time it is SO shocking as it is 2014 now! Bring on the BSL Act!
Ruth matthews
March 25, 2014
Have emailed this to my surgery which has a dreadful phone system where you can only get an appointment on day you phone and impossible to get through on type talk. Have ended up having to walk in to try and get an appointment.
Cathy Alexander
March 25, 2014
I have always had to walk in to book an appointment as there is no other way of getting one!!! Some surgeries are great, some less so, so education is needed here. However, in fairness to the NHS, which is overloaded with patients etc, some deaf people refuse to accept they are in bad health and do not seek treatment until its way too late!! Although videos in BSL are required it would be good to start with educating deaf children in schools about health and helping them to read and write well, so they could at least access health information from reading about it. At the very least this would give the next generation a fighting chance of staying as healthy as possible.
Kevin
March 25, 2014
NHS should have update and Note on customer disability information on computer system. Old days they use have folder or file and have red deaf symbol sticker.
Only my personal doctor know when to call me in. he actually come out of door and bring me in. Most doctor let me stranded after anonymous. But most people let me know who is and some don’t care and they skip after me. Cheeky sod.
johnny fantastica
March 25, 2014
That is very very bad, I am a lucky guy, My Doctor, Dentist, Optician, always come into the waiting room to fetch me and take a little longer for personal chat as well, the only place where they come and shout my name like hell is the hearing aid centre, wow, how stupid, have sat there for ages as missed my call.
I think Ruth Matthews has good idea, email the report to all Doctor and Hospital surgeries,
Lastly we make our own health, its the way we live, bad eating and bad habits = bad health
all power to get this sorted
G
March 25, 2014
Yes, it is very shocking, but not surprising! I am convinced I am treated as a second class citizen by the NHS, as I know people with less serious conditions than me getting a better class of treatment. Maybe because our ‘personal NHS budget’ is spent on hearings aids so they can’t pay for other stuff.
Martyn
March 25, 2014
It saddens me to read things like this, but we have to take some personal responsibility. I always go to my surgery to make an appointment. I had to plead my case early on, but most of the staff know me by sight now and will accommodate me. I always sit opposite where the doctor comes out so I can lipread them. I would say if you aren’t getting anywhere with your surgery, make a nuisance of yourself (in a civil fashion of course). It may help your situation and at the same time, educate people. That includes the staff and the general public in the waiting room. Know your rights and make a stand.
drivingdan
May 18, 2014
I read the content of this blog with interest as I work in an environment where I often come into contact with deaf people and I have recognised that something more needs to be done.
I have created a mobile phone/tablet app called Eye-Sign which I hope will break down some of those barriers and give the deaf families and wider communities access to a equal standard of care, treatment and service by professionals.
Eye-Sign is now available on the googleplay store and includes a British Sign Language database and American Sign Language database. Both of these at this time have a limited number of words but due to the way the app works words which aren’t included at this time still are spelt using finger spelling therefore meaning any word could be spelt and signed.
The app allows for example the doctor to speak and video images appear of a person signing the spoken words. The deaf person can then tap in their reply and this can continue. At the end of the conversation this can be signed using a stylus and saved in a read only PDF file which can’t be changed or amended in anyway. This can also be printed.
I really hope that people like doctors, nurses, paramedics, police, fire service personnel and other professionals acknowledge the fact they need to change the way they treat deaf people and my app might be a solution.
Thanks
@eyesignapp Eye-Sign