Deafblind UK offers two leaflets for health service providers. The leaflets ‘Equipment: Going beyond the DDA!’ and ‘What is an accessible environment’ enabled health practitioners to reduce the physical barriers to access that people who are deafblind or have a progressive sight and hearing loss frequently face.
The leaflet ‘Equipment: Going beyond the DDA!’ highlights the rights of all people to access health services, and that by using equipment, stress can be reduced for both the patient and health professional. Our top tips emphasise the equipment that could benefit people who are deafblind or have progressive sight and hearing loss and health professionals working with them. This leaflet also enables deafblind people to identify the equipment that social services departments may provide, and lists the types of equipment that deafblind have found to be useful.
Our ‘Cause and Cure’ report has highlighted that inaccessible environments can create greater disablement, and reduces independent mobility. The leaflet ‘What is an accessible environment’ shows how simple and often inexpensive adaptations can reduce the disabling effect of the unfamiliar health service environments. By following our advice from quick fixes to long term solutions health services can significantly reduce the health inequalities face by people
who are deafblind or have a progressive
sight and hearing loss.
For more information or to request a copy of these publications, please contact a member of the Policy, Campaigns and Awareness team on 01733 358100 (phone and textphone) or alternatively email info@deafblind.org.uk
