Deaf patients get a raw deal in NHS hospitals, illustrative case history suggests
Deaf patients get a raw deal in NHS hospitals, suggests an illustrative case history of a deaf person's experience as an inpatient, published in the online journal BMJ Case Reports. During his hospital stay, reasonable adjustments to facilitate access to services—a key tenet of U.K. disability legislation—weren't made; the need for a professional British Sign Language (BSL) interpreter wasn't…
A deaf patient admitted to a hospital in the United Kingdom experienced significant communication barriers that compromised his care, according to a case report published in BMJ Case Reports. The man, who primarily uses British Sign Language (BSL), encountered several issues during his hospital stay. Despite his use of BSL as his primary means of communication, the notes only indicated an ability to lip-read, which proved insufficient.
Upon admission, the hospital failed to recognize his need for a professional BSL interpreter promptly. The man was only provided with an Interpreter on Wheels service, a portable iPad for video calling BSL interpreters, four days later. However, this service is only available during normal working hours and was hindered by an unstable internet connection and the man's poor eyesight.
Throughout his stay, the man developed an irregular heartbeat and needed intravenous antibiotics for a chest infection. These diagnoses were made clinically without formal communication with him. He also required various treatments, including blood transfusions, but a professional BSL interpreter only arrived 11 days after his admission. Despite this delay, staff had persistently tried to communicate with him using written materials, which he found difficult due to his poor eyesight and a bilateral tremor.
The man's case highlights a systemic gap in training for medical staff in dealing with deaf patients. It underscores the importance of timely interpreter access and reasonable adjustments to ensure effective communication. The report authors emphasize that patient-centered care relies on effective communication in the patient's own language, which should not be a challenging task when using a BSL interpreter.
Reflecting on his experience, the man expressed feeling treated differently as a deaf patient and struggling to understand the events unfolding around him due to staff's inability to communicate effectively. He concluded that BSL teaching for staff would be beneficial, along with more deaf awareness training to improve the experience of other deaf patients in the future.
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