Beyond Deafness- Serving Individuals who are
Deaf or Hard of Hearing with Co-Occurring
Disabilities
Kathy Schwabeland
July 16, 2014
Which Comes First, the Chicken or the Egg?
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Hearing loss is not always the “bigger” disability
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The impact of all disabilities must be considered when determining appropriate
accommodations to achieve equitable access. Neither disability can be viewed and
accommodated in isolation.
WHEW! Now what??
Access for All
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Specialized interpreter services
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Direct communication with professional staff
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Program modifications
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Interventions and services designed for hearing individuals are not always effective with
DHH individuals
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Individualized, flexible, and evolving
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Collaboration with other institutions and programs who are experienced in the provision
of services to the target population
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Case Studies:
Julie:
BACKGROUND:
Full time student in accounting
Fluent in ASL and deaf since birth
Has Usher’s Syndrome (deaf blind)
FOR ACCESS:
Communication- well lit room, adapted signing space
Communication- needs to use tactile signing in dim lighting conditions
Orientation and Mobility- uses cane in dim lighting conditions
Safety- requires tactile alerting system for door and fire alarm
THE PLAN:
Communication- team interpreting with interpreters who are familiar with providing tactile
sign language and will utilize black clothing during assignment
Communication- alert faculty to provide breaks during long classes and make student aware of
dim lighting conditions
Orientation and Mobility- alert student to any changes in sidewalks, pathways etc. which can
impede mobility
Safety- provision of tactile alerting system for door and fire alarm; collaboration with
residential and campus safety staff on effective emergency procedures
Franco:
BACKGROUND:
Full time student in communications
Deaf- uses hearing aids and mixture of ASL and spoken English
Currently experiencing seasonal depression
FOR ACCESS:
Counseling- direct counseling services
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Counseling- needs to use interpreter if service provider not fluent in ASL
Psychological Testing- needs to undergo testing but what instrument to use
THE PLAN:
Counseling- direct counseling services from professional fluent in ASL and knowledgeable of
deaf culture and identity
Counseling- hiring of qualified mental health interpreters and understanding of the effect of
the interpreter in the counseling relationship- third party introduced and relational issues
Counseling- education of mental health providers on how to effectively use an interpreter in
the therapeutic setting
Psychological Testing- understanding that tests are often invalid with DHH individuals since
deaf norm is not available; results need to be viewed with caution
Natasha
BACKGROUND:
Full time student in engineering
Hard of Hearing- uses FM system and sometimes CART
Recently returned to school after 30 days in in patient rehab facility
FOR ACCESS:
Counseling- direct counseling services
Support Group- needs to use FM during meetings
Residential- needs door and fire alert system on special interest housing floor
THE PLAN:
Counseling- direct counseling services from a professional knowledgeable of the
social/psychological impacts of hearing loss on an individual
Counseling- modification of therapy techniques which rely heavily on auditory or written
expression and allow for more visual expression
Support Group- provision of FM system and mics for group discussions; education of group
facilitator on effective communication techniques
Residential- provision of hard wired visual fire alarm and also door signaler
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Evan:
BACKGROUND:
Part time student in developmental courses
Deaf- uses a mixture of ASL, home signs, and gestures
Born in Haiti and moved to US at age of 10; had no formal language when entered public school
system
FOR ACCESS:
Instruction- direct instructional services
Instruction- use of interpreters if instructors not fluent in ASL
Instruction- materials and instruction need to be altered
THE PLAN:
Instruction- direct instructional services from instructors fluent in ASL and knowledgeable
about deafness are most effective
Instruction- use of interpreters and certified deaf interpreters (CDI) skilled in working with
Individuals with unique language needs
Instruction- modification of teaching materials from an auditory based system of instruction
to a visual based system of instruction
Instruction- use of more visual materials and demonstrations to illustrate concepts and ideas
Resources:
Pepnet Tip Sheet: Counseling Students who have Usher Syndrome
http://www.pepnet.org/sites/default/files/67PEPNet%20Tipsheet%20%20%20counseling%20students%20who%20have%20Usher%20Syndrome.pdf
Guidelines for Interacting with People who are Deaf Blind http://www.hknc.org/Guidelines.htm
Helen Keller Center http://www.hknc.org/
Deaf Blind Tip (interpreting) www.deafblindtip.com
Vision Sim- app to stimulate vision loss android and iPhone
http://www.brailleinstitute.org/programs/index.php/digital/mobile-applications
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National Center on Deaf-Blindness http://nationaldb.org/
Mental Health Services- Resources from the National Association of the Deaf
http://www.nad.org/issues/health-care/mental-health-services
Interpreting in the Mental Health Setting- RID Guidelines
http://www.rid.org/UserFiles/File/pdfs/Standard_Practice_Papers/Mental_Health_SPP.pdf
Mental Health Interpreting Training http://www.mhit.org/
Training Resources- Mental Health interpreting http://www.urmc.rochester.edu/deaf-wellnesscenter/products/mental-health-interpreting.cfm
Psychotherapy with Deaf Clients from Diverse Groups
http://books.google.com/books?id=FbXFwXLGJ5kC&pg=PA38&lpg=PA37&ots=ui8oggJjm1&focus=viewp
ort&dq=deaf+group+counseling&output=html_text
Mental Illness in the Deaf Community http://lifeprint.com/asl101/topics/mentalillness.htm
Pn2day article- mental health interpreting http://www.pepnet.org/pn2day/032014
Pepnet Research Brief- Mental Health Care for DHH Individuals
http://www.pepnet.org/sites/default/files/Reseach%20Brief_Mental%20Health%20v4.pdf
Psych educational Testing with DHH
http://www.pepnet.org/sites/default/files/99A%20Test%20Equity%20Considerations%20Psychoedcuati
onal%20tests.pdf
Substance Abuse: Impact on Students or Clients who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing
http://www.pepnet.org/resources/substance
Is There a Substance Abuse Problem Among Deaf or Hard of Hearing Individuals?
http://www.mncddeaf.org/articles/problem_ad.htm
SAISD
http://deafness.about.com/gi/o.htm?zi=1/XJ&zTi=1&sdn=deafness&cdn=health&tm=149&f=10&su=p28
4.13.342.ip_&tt=2&bt=7&bts=7&zu=http%3A//www.rit.edu/~257www/
Addictions Help! Deaf and Hard of Hearing – tons of links to other resources here
http://www.michdhh.org/health_care/recovery_community.html
Alcoholics Anonymous (Big Book- first 11 chapters) in ASL- DVD with captions https://b2c.aaws.org/p661-alcoholics-anonymous-asl-dvd.aspx
Twelve Steps and Twelve Traditions in ASL - DVD with captions https://b2c.aaws.org/p-660-twelvesteps-and-twelve-traditions-asl-dvd.aspx
AA materials in ASL and Braille http://www.aadallas.org/non_cms/shop/tpvidpics/spcneeds.htm
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Street Leverage- Hearing/Deaf teams http://www.streetleverage.com/team-me-up-cdi/
Language Deprivation Syndrome https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8yy_K6VtHJw
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