The future of communications services for deaf and hard of hearing people
Imagine for a moment complete silence. Now imagine that silence isn’t peaceful or serene, but that it’s total and permanent.
Your phone rings, you can’t hear it. The fire bell screeches, and you don’t notice. Your boss has an important meeting, but you can’t follow what they say.
Current forms of communication support
There are nearly nine million deaf and hard of hearing people in the UK. Of these people, there are an estimated 50,000 people who use British Sign Language as their first or preferred language.1
Hearing aids are used by around two million people. In the last five years technology has advanced to a stage where more people are having cochlear implants fitted. These implants are a surgically implanted electronic device that provides a sense of sound to a person who is profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing.
It is a mistake to assume that deafness can be ‘cured’ by hearing aids and cochlear implants. For many people they prove useful, but anecdotal evidence suggests that this is not the case for everyone.
The profound sense of isolation, the frustration of missing out on in social situations and the fear of falling behind in work all combine to make hearing loss a terribly frightening thing.
For some people losing their hearing, they might feel it’s too late to learn British Sign Language, or feel that as their friends, family and colleagues don’t use it; it may not be useful to learn.
Lip reading helps many suffering from hearing loss to follow what is being said. But in low-light, large groups or with a speaker who mumbles, much of the nuances of conversation can be lost. Many hearing people fail to understand how vital it is to speak slowly and clearly and not to be frustrated if asked to repeat themselves.
Written English as the primary method of communication
Written English is a life line to many deaf and hard of hearing people. Subtitles on the BBC, and recently ITV, whilst not perfect, enable many to participate in nation-wide preoccupation – TV watching!
Advancing telecommunications technology has increased accessibility for deaf and hard of hearing people as emails, text messages and social networking sites open up new possibilities for communicating.
Palantypist - What’s that?
Palantypists are trained to type speech using a special phonetic keyboard. They often support deaf and hard of hearing people who don’t use British Sign Language. In a meeting a palantypist would sit next to the deaf person who could follow what is being said, as it’s being said, on the palantypists screen.
But using palantypists can be fraught with problems. They are very scarce, with less than 25 palantypists working in the UK, most of which are based in the South East, it can be a real challenge trying to book them, and if you are not in the South East travel and hotel expenses can very quickly stack up into the hundreds of pounds.
As the Government tries to encourage more disabled people into the workplace, strain is being placed on the Access to Work budget. This is the budget which supports disabled people in the workplace. It provides funding for services like interpreting. Many deaf people are facing strict limits on the amount they are allowed to spend on communication support services.
If cost and availability aren’t enough of a worry, many deaf and hard of hearing people face being ignored when people speak to their palantypist instead of them. This can create an anxiety about a third person attend their meetings and events, and meant mean they try to struggle on.
Remote Captioning
But recent technological advances have brought some relief. Remote Captioning is a revolutionary new service enabling deaf and hard of hearing people to access a palantypist over the internet.
The service works by a palantypist listening to what is being said in a meeting or event using either Skype or a telephone. They then type what they hear and this text is streamed over the internet. The text can be displayed on a computer, laptop, smart phone, projector or plasma screen. There’s no special equipment, nothing to download, no software: An internet connection is all that is needed for the service to work.
The cost of the service is far less than working with on-site palantypists. With no travel costs and only an hour’s minimum booking fee, Remote Captioning is a much more cost effective service, enabling those on tight budgets to continue to use palantypists as and when they need them. For those struggling to pay for travel and hotel expenses, the service has been a revolution.
Furthermore, the availability of palantypists is fantastic. This means that deaf and hard of hearing people can take part in those spontaneous meetings, which are so vital in the workplace.
About the author
Following a career in corporate events and fund raising, Beth Everard started Bee Communications. Her mission is to enable accurate and effortless communication between individuals from all backgrounds. Bee Communications is a boutique agency providing Remote Captioning for clients across the UK. We provide a uniquely flexible and friendly service, offering free test calls and onsite demonstrations.
Please see our website: www.bee-communications.com for more details.
Or contact us by emailing beth@bee-communications.com or calling 020 7231 3192.
References
1) These are the the most recent estimated figures for the number of deaf and hard of hearing adults in the UK as displayed on the RNID website: http://www.rnid.org.uk/information_resources/aboutdeafness/statistics/statistics.htm
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