Updated March 30, 2015
EMS providers are likely to encounter patients who are deaf or hard of hearing. How would you learn the chief complaint of a patient who cannot hear your question? In 2009, I asked Neil McDevitt, who at the time was the Program Director of the , to share some tips for assessing and treating patients who are deaf or hard of hearing. is now the Mayor of North Wales Borough, Pennsylvania and the Deaf-Hearing Communicaation Center, Inc. Executive Director.
Patient assessment tips
Here are McDevitt鈥檚 patient assessment tips:
1. Hearing loss and communication skills vary
Some people cannot hear anything, but are still able to speak clearly. Others can hear quite a bit, but have great speech difficulty.
2. Not every deaf or hard-of-hearing person can lip-read
Even a great lip-reader may have great difficulty when ill or injured. Some rescuers are not lip-readable due to mouth structure, facial hair, or vocal accent.
3. Speak simply and clearly
Speaking louder or slower often makes you less understandable. It鈥檚 better to simply speak clearly.
4. Gestures complement verbal communication skills
They鈥檙e also useful with people who don鈥檛 speak English or have cognitive disabilities.
5. Use facial expressions since many emotions are easily read
For example, raised eyebrows indicate a question. Raising your eyebrows while pointing to your wrist asks, 鈥淒id you hurt your wrist?鈥�
6. Offer communication assistance
Ask the patient if he or she needs any communication services at the hospital and call ahead to request those services, like an American Sign Language interpreter.
Patient assessment practice
Practice Neil鈥檚 tips by doing 鈥渟ilent鈥� patient assessment drills. Neil believes that 鈥渕ost emergency services workers are already fluent in non-verbal communication. It won鈥檛 be easy, but with some knowledge and practice, they will get the job done.鈥� Above all else, ASK the patient how you can work together to make communication successful.
