Transcript Sensitivity Training: working with people with hearing loss

Sensitivity Training:
working with people
with hearing loss
By
Tamar Clarke
June 16, 2005
Updated June 14, 2006
OVERVIEW
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Purpose of the Training and Overview
Defining Hearing Loss
Statistics Regarding Hearing Loss
Recognizing Signs of Hearing Loss (and Scoring )
Understanding the “Audiogram” and the nature of
hearing loss
Communication Tips and Under Various Environments
Mental Health Issues
Legal Issues
Purpose of Training and Overview
Talk about effective communication with
people with a hearing loss
 We hear but don’t always understand
 Talk about inclusion
 Attitude
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Statistics
One in ten Americans has a hearing loss
 One in three Americans has a hearing
loss at the age of sixty-five
 One in two Americans has a hearing loss
at the age of eighty-five
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Use of Hearing Aids and Assistive
Listening Devices
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About 28 million Americans have a hearing loss
About two to three Americans are considered
deaf
The remaining numbers are considered hard of
hearing
Only six million Americans are wearing hearing
aids
Note: More Americans may be experiencing hearing loss than listed on
this slide.
Testing for Hearing Loss, part 1
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Do you frequently have to ask others to repeat?
Do you have to turn up the volume up on television?
Do you have difficulty understanding when in groups or
in noisy situations?
Do you have to sit up front in meetings or in church in
order to understand the speaker(s)?
Do you have difficulty understanding women or young
children?
Source: Promotional materials from the SHHH National Day of Hearing Screening for May 2000 and May 2001.
Testing for Hearing Loss, part 2
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Do you have trouble knowing where sounds are
coming from?
Are you able to understand when someone talks to
you from another room? If not, this is another check.
Have others told you that you don’t seem to hear
them?
Do you avoid family meetings or social situations
because you “can’t understand”?
Do you having ringing or other noises (tinnitus) in your
ears?
Score Results
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ANSWERED YES TO LESS THAN 3 QUESTIONS
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ANSWERED YES TO BETWEEN 3 AND 5 QUESTIONS
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you may have a slight hearing problem
ANSWERED YES TO BETWEEN 5 AND 7 QUESTIONS
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no significant hearing loss present
you probably have a moderate hearing problem
ANSWERED YES TO MORE THAN 7 QUESTIONS
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you probably have a significant hearing problem
A special type of audiogram
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On the next slide is a graph of a special type of
audiogram, that enables you to visualize how a
hearing loss in a particular frequency and
volume affects the person’s ability to hear that
sound.
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Source: This is a based on a chart in Hearing in Children, 5th edition, 2002
(Jerry L. Northern and Marion P. Downs), page 18. Note: Was unable to
obtain copyright permission to display audiogram. It is an excellent chart
showing the relationship of a person’s ability to hear or not hear and
understand specific sounds in the English language.
Mild Hearing Loss in High
Frequency Sound Range affects
Hearing
A 20 decibel hearing loss, a mild hearing loss, in
the 4000 frequency range can affect a person’s
ability to hear three sounds, the f, s, and th.
Note: This is a based on a chart in Hearing in Children, 5th edition, 2002 (Jerry
L. Northern and Marion P. Downs), page 18.
Communication tips, part 1
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1. Make sure that the environment is a quiet
one
2. Always have the person facing you
3. Get their attention first, very important
4. Do not raise voice or distort sound
5. If necessary, write using a notepad and
pencil
6. Can use pocket talkers to amplify speech
Communication tips, part 2
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7. TV captioning
8. Internet and Regular Relay calls
9. Educate your communicators as to what
works best for you in terms of a hearing and
listening environment. People with hearing
needs often need to hear it twice, to allow for
more processing time.
10. Most important, allow time for additional
processing of information when speaking to
a person with a hearing loss. This is
probably the key factor to remember when
communicating with a person with a hearing
loss.
Source of picture: Disability Etiquette:
Tips on interacting with people with
disabilities by Judy Cohen (Access
Resources) and illustrations by Yvette
Silver. A publication of the Eastern
Paralyzed Veterans Association, now
called United Spinal Association. Page
21. Received copyright permission to
display the graphics
Communication under different
environments
Individual
 Group (informal)
 Meetings, Formal
 Classroom Environments
 Performing Arts
 Parties/Restaurants
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Meetings, Formal
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Take turns speaking (no two or more people
speaking at the same time)
Prepare an agenda prior meeting
Follow the agenda
Have materials in writing
Have a meeting note taker
Send out a written summary of meeting
Repeat questions asked by audience
Re-emphasize, repeat main points
Tips for Hearing People
Set your stage
 Project your communication
 Establish empathy with audience
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RULE: When audio is poor, emphasize the
visual.
Set Your Stage
Face audience directly.
 Spotlight your face (no backlighting). Avoid
noisy backgrounds. Get attention first.
 Ask how you can facilitate communication.
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Project Your Communication
Don't shout.
 Speak clearly, at moderate pace.
 Don't hide your mouth, chew food, gum, or
smoke while talking.
 Re-phrase if you are not understood. Use
facial expressions, gestures.
 Give clues when changing subject.
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Establish Empathy with Audience
Be patient if response seems slow. Stay
positive and relaxed.
 Talk to a hard of hearing person, not about
him/her.
 Offer respect to help build confidence.
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Mental Health issues
Howard Hughes biography
 Dr. Sam Trychin’s List
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 Anxiety
 Depression
 Denial/Avoidance
Legal Issues
Rehabilitation Act of 1973, especially
section 501
 Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990
 Others legal sources
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Conclusion
Training is to help you have a more
rewarding experience communicating with
people who have a hearing loss
 Promoting Respect
 Promoting Inclusion
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Addendum Issues
Acoustics
 CART (Computer Assisted Relay
Transcription)
 Hearing Aid Use
 Assistive Listening Devices, e.g. pocket
talkers, etc.
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Resources: an abbreviated list
National Self-Help for Hard of Hearing
People
 Northern Virginia Resource Center for
Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons
 Target Center at USDA
 ILR Program on Employment and
Disability, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
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Addendum Resources
Ability.
Published bimonthly by C.R. Cooper Publishing. 1682 Langley Avenue,
Irvine, California 92614-5633 (ISSN 1062-5321).
Disability Etiquette: Tips on interacting with people with disabilities by Judy
Cohen (Access Resources) and illustrations by Yvette Silver. A publication
of the Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association, now called United Spinal
Association. Page 21.
Judy Cohen
351 West 24th Street, Suite 9F
New York, NY 10011
(212) 741-3758 (Voice/TTY)
email: [email protected]
Note: Focuses more on the deaf, rather than the hard of hearing. It is a
really nice resource with interesting cartoons to illustrate basic ideas.
(Note: Eastern Paralyzed Veterans Association has changed their name to United Spinal
Association. It is a non-profit organization that provides information and services to individuals
with spinal injuries. Their website is: www.unitedspinal.org)
Addendum Resources, page 2
Hearing Health: The 15th Annual Resource Guide: Your 2000 Reference
for Communication Assistance. Includes a biographical article about
Howard Hughes, a gifted and brilliant man. He had a hearing loss that
became progressively worse, and a disability that he never came to terms
with.
The Kennedy Center. Assistive Listening Devices for People with Hearing
Loss: A Guide for Performing Arts Settings. Washington, DC : Kennedy
Center for the Performing Arts, 26 pages.
National Self-Help for the Hard of Hearing People
www.shhh.org
www.hearingloss.org
Self Help for Hard of Hearing People is changing to Name to Hearing Loss
Association as of November 2005.
7910 Woodmont Ave, Suite 1200
Bethesda, Maryland 20814
301-657-2248 Voice
301-657-2249 TTY
301-913-9413 Fax
Addendum Resources, page 3
NIDCD: National Institute of Deafness and Communication Disorders at
National Institutes of Health
http://nidcd.nih.gov/health/pubs_hb/older.html
or http://www.nidcd.nih.gov
Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons
10363 Democracy Lane
Fairfax, Virginia 22030
(703) 35209055 Voice
(703) 352-9056 TTY
(703) 352-9058 FAX
Addendum Resources, page 4
Samuel Trychin and Debra Busacco. Manual for Mental Health
Professionals, Part 1: Basic Information for Providing Services to Hard of
Hearing People and Their Families. Washington, DC : Gallaudet
University, c1991, 81 pages
Samuel Trychin. Manual for Mental Health Professionals, Part II: PsychoSocial Challenges Faced by Hard of Hearing People. Washington, DC :
Gallaudet University, c1991, 146 pages.
Samuel Trychin and Marjorie Boone. Communication Rules for Hard of
Hearing People: A workbook on Wrong Ways/Right Ways for Effective
Communicaqtion. Washington, DC : Gallaudet University, c1987. 72
pages.
Note: Samuel Trychin’s materials offer suggestions for role playing for people
encountering communication issues in conjunction with their hearing loss.
Addendum Resources, page 5
TARGET CENTER AT USDA
Located at USDA Headquarters
South Building
Washington, DC
202-720-2600
Hours: 8:00 am to 3:00 pm (EST)
http://dowland.dcrt.nih.gov/target/tap_home.html
U.S. Dept. of Justice. Civil Rights Division. Disability Rights Section. A guide to
Disability Rights Laws. Washington, DC. : August 2001.
“Working Effectively with Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing” from Program
on Employment and Disability, New York State School of Industrial and Labor
Relations, Cornell University. April 1994 For more information, contact Cornell
University, ILR Program on Employment and Disability, 102 ILR Extension,
Ithaca, New York 14853-3901 or at 607-255-2906 (Voice), or at 607-255-2891
(TTY) or 607-255-2763.
Note: They have a list of articles on working with people with various disabilities.
This powerpoint is presented and compiled as a public service and to improve
the communication between those with hearing loss and those who hear well.
This can be within the family, in the work environment, and in the community.
If this is helpful and you would like to make a financial contribution, please make
it to the Hearing Loss Association in Bethesda, Maryland and/or the DC
Chapter. We used materials from this organization in this powerpoint
presentation.
If you have questions or suggestions, you can contact Tamar Clarke via email
on [email protected].