chha - royal york hotel training
TRANSCRIPT
Canadian Hard of Hearing Association National ConferenceMay 21-24, 2014
Fairmont Royal York Hotel Staff TrainingCommunication Tips
Some disabilities are visible; others, such as hearing loss, are invisible.
A person can be young or old, be born with hearing loss, or acquire hearing loss as a result of an injury or chronic illness.
Hearing loss may be combined with visual loss and/or other disabilities.
Hearing Loss
Hearing Loss
Hearing loss is the fastest growing, and one of the most prevalent, chronic conditions facing Canadians today.
Nearly 1 out of every 4 adult Canadians reports having some hearing loss, although closer to 10% of people actually identify themselves as culturally Deaf, oral deaf, deafened, or hard of hearing. (CHS Awareness Survey 2002)
530,210 people in Ontario (4.74% of the population) are deaf or hard of hearing. (Canada Census 2006)
Myth: Hearing aids correct hearing 100%
Fact: Wrong. While new hearing aids can compensate for many losses, they cannot restore normal hearing. They can, however, help you get the most listening enjoyment from the hearing you still have.
Myth: For people with hearing loss, everything is equally hard to hear.
Fact: This is a common fallacy but completely untrue. A person with hearing loss may have normal hearing in the low tones but severe loss in higher frequencies — the register where women’s and children’s voices tend to be.
Hearing Loss Myths
Myth: If you have a hearing loss, it just means sounds aren’t loud enough.
Fact: Hearing isn’t only about loudness or decibel level. There is also a difference between hearing and understanding – one may “hear” a noise or speech but have difficulty understanding what it means or where the sound is.
Myth: If you shout loud enough, people with a hearing loss will understand you better.
Fact: Wrong. In fact, loud conversation may be painful. Loudness will not make distorted sound any clearer, and may make the situation worse.
Myth: A person who can speak cannot be deaf.
Fact: Some deaf individuals have clear and modulated speech. This does not preclude them from having a hearing loss or being deaf.
Myth: People with a hearing loss are not sensitive to noise.
Fact: Some types of hearing loss actually accentuate sensitivity to noise. Loud sounds become garbled and uncomfortable. Hearing aid users often find loud noises, which are greatly magnified by their aids, to be very unpleasant.
Myth: All culturally Deaf, oral deaf, deafened, and hard of hearing people are good speech-readers or lip-readers.
Fact: Many factors are involved in the success of speech-reading. People with hearing loss are not instinctively better speech-readers.
Myth: All people with a hearing loss know a signed language.
Fact: Culturally Deaf people know and use a signed language while only some deafened and hard of hearing people know and use a signed language. Many people with a hearing loss do not know a signed language.
Sign Language Interpreters
Real-Time Captioning (also known as CART)
Assistive Listening Systems
Forms of Accommodation
How to Create an Accessible Eventfor People with a Hearing Loss
Ensure that a member of your staff is responsible for making the event accessible.
Be prepared to respond to accommodation requests in the same manner that you respond to other requests and questions about the event.
Provide water bowls for hearing ear guide dogs.
Communication Tips
Always ask how you may assist and how you can improve communication
Get the person’s attention before you speak – subtly!
Remove visual distractions and background noise and speak in a well-lit area
Maintain eye contact
Speak slowly, clearly, and naturally – do not raise your voice to an unnatural level
Rephrase when you are not understood – be patient and take your time
Talk to the person, not the sign language interpreter
If communication is still difficult, ask if another method may be easier, i.e., pen and paper, typing on an iPad
Summarize the outcome of the transaction to be sure your message is received
Most importantly,good communication benefits
EVERYONE!
Thank you for your commitment to making our
event a positive onefor all participants!
Questions?