Ear and Hearing care healthcare providers hold that educating people on etiquette for approaching those withbhearing impairement will promote thebinclusivity agenda and help the hospital staff while communicating with members of the staff and patients with hearing impairment.

The healthcare providers believe it is best to start with some basic definitions of terms, for instance: Deaf : A person with profound hearing loss which implies little or no hearing Deaf Blind : A rare condition in which an individual has a combined hearing and vision loss, thus limiting access to both auditory and visual information .Deaf Disabled: Individuals with hearing loss and additional disability .

Hard of Hearing : Hearing loss where there may be enough residual hearing that an auditory device such as a hearing aid provides adequate assistance to process speech Late deafened : A person who grew up
hearing then lost all or most of his or her hearing as an adult Deaf Culture: A culture practiced by a
linguistic group formed by deaf and hard of hearing individuals emphasizing on the use of sign language as a common heritage. The word deaf at times is used in an all-inclusive manner to include all the
above categories of people. A Deaf Community is a diverse community, consisting of deaf individuals, their families, educators, Care givers, friends, and sign language interpreters.

It is important to note that not all individuals who have hearing impairment communicate via sign language. Some use gestures others lip reading or other adoptive measures. This unique population of individuals faces numerous barriers, especially in communication and interaction with the hearing population. Access to information and services is often depending on the availability of interpreters, closed captioning, and assistive technologies. Some individuals rely on amplification devices such as hearing aids and cochlear implants.

The community is actively engaged in advocacy for their rights and inclusion, striving for equitable access to education, employment opportunities, and resources and Individuals with hearing impairment form part and parcel of our day-to-day life’s especially in a hospital environment. While communicating with these individuals it is important to mind the following:

1. There is a range of communication preferences and styles among people with hearing loss, whenever the exchange of information is complex between yourself and an individual with hearing impairment using an interpreter or writing back and forth can help.
2. It is import and to follow a person’s cues to find out if they prefer sign language gesturing writing or
speaking.
3. Before speaking to a person who is deaf or hard of hearing, make sure you get their attention appropriately either by extending your arm, waving your hand or tapping on their shoulder.
4.Make sure you face the person with the hearing disability while communicating to them even when using a sign language interpreter.
5.Make sure to be in a well-lit room so they can see your face well as some rely on lip reading and non-verbal cues and facial expressions Statistically People who read lips only understand about 30 % of what is being said and a lot of meaning is gathered from content and facial expressions.
6. Speak clearly and give direct or precise instructions.
7. Avoid shouting, especially at individuals wearing amplification devices.The devices are calibrated to normal voice levels thus your shout will sound distorted and might hurt the individuals’ ears.
8. Rephrase rather than repeat sentences that an individual with a hearing impairment doesn’t understand ,
9. Not all deaf people know sign language, There are different versions of sign language in the world. Kenya predominantly uses Kenya Sign Language .KSL in itself also has different variation .
10. A lack of hearing does not mean lack of ability deaf individuals can do anything a hearing person can
do except hear. They are thus completely capable of leading a quality life. We should therefore make a
conscious effort when interacting with them to mind our communication etiquette to accommodate them to make their life easy in a world full of connections .

As Hellen Keller once said “Blindness separates people from things, deafness separates people from people.”

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