Sensitivity Training:working with people with hearing lossByTamar ClarkeJune 16, 2005Updated June 14, 2006

OVERVIEW

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

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

Use of Hearing Aids and Assistive Listening Devices

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

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

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

ANSWERED YES TO LESS THAN 3 QUESTIONS no significant hearing loss present

ANSWERED YES TO BETWEEN 3 AND 5 QUESTIONS you may have a slight hearing problem

ANSWERED YES TO BETWEEN 5 AND 7 QUESTIONS you probably have a moderate hearing problem

ANSWERED YES TO MORE THAN 7 QUESTIONS you probably have a significant hearing problem

A special type of audiogram

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.

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

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 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

Meetings, Formal

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

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.

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.

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.

Mental Health issues

Howard Hughes biography Dr. Sam Trychin’s List

AnxietyDepressionDenial/Avoidance

Legal Issues

Rehabilitation Act of 1973, especially section 501

Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990 Others legal sources

Conclusion

Training is to help you have a more rewarding experience communicating with people who have a hearing loss

Promoting Respect Promoting Inclusion

Addendum Issues

Acoustics CART (Computer Assisted Relay

Transcription) Hearing Aid Use Assistive Listening Devices, e.g. pocket

talkers, etc.

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

Addendum ResourcesAbility. 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 Cohen351 West 24th Street, Suite 9FNew York, NY 10011(212) 741-3758 (Voice/TTY)email: accessrs@ix.netcom.comNote: 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 2Hearing 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 Peoplewww.shhh.orgwww.hearingloss.orgSelf 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 Healthhttp://nidcd.nih.gov/health/pubs_hb/older.htmlor http://www.nidcd.nih.gov

Northern Virginia Resource Center for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Persons10363 Democracy LaneFairfax, Virginia 22030(703) 35209055 Voice(703) 352-9056 TTY(703) 352-9058 FAX

Addendum Resources, page 4Samuel 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: Psycho-Social 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 USDALocated at USDA HeadquartersSouth BuildingWashington, DC202-720-2600Hours: 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 tamarclarke2000@yahoo.com.