2 nd International Hearing Loop Conference Washington DC, June 2011 Consumer Advocacy Around the...

2nd International Hearing Loop ConferenceWashington DC, June 2011

Consumer Advocacy Around the World: The Irish Perspective

Emma McAuley

DeafHear.ie/IHHA

2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011

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Who am I??...

• Born in Dublin• Hereditary hearing

loss– Severe in low

frequencies/profound in high frequencies

• h/aid from age of 12• Main stream school

and college

A ‘consumer’…


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And also a consumer advocate...

• Accounting Technician• Mull of Kintyre (Scotland)

for 2 years• Irish Hard of Hearing

Association (IHHA) & Young Action on Hearing (YAH)

• National Association for Deaf People (NAD) (now DeafHear.ie)

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FREQUENCY IN HZ

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IHHA

Brief CV!!...

http://www.google.ie/imgres?imgurl=http://www.kintyre.org/siteimages/mapktr.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.kintyre.org/&h=231&w=300&sz=23&tbnid=7zNDsn5S65U4RM:&tbnh=89&tbnw=116&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dmull%2Bof%2Bkintyre%2Bmap%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=mull+of+kintyre+map&hl=en&usg=__FMM6Dms2cB7-M504svR_rYh5g4c=&sa=X&ei=WhLkTZP2BsqLhQfHxYHqBw&ved=0CEIQ9QEwBg


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Irish Hard of Hearing Association (IHHA)

• Member since 1993

• On council for six years from 1997 – 2003

• www.ihha.ie

• Affiliated with DeafHear.ie since 1998

• 25th Anniversary celebrated in 2011

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• The IHHA is an association of people who acquired a hearing loss after the acquisition of speech and language..... It is a small charitable and voluntary organisation.

• Aims:– Creating awareness of hearing loss and

its impact on people’s lives


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• Aims (continued):– Campaigning for greater access to services for

HoH people by actively lobbying for subtitles and hearing loops to mention but two, while also working with other disability groups and aiming to develop good relationships with service providers encouraging them to go beyond the legislative requirements

– Seeking to support each other via a social network, engaging in social and leisure activities and communication with each other on matters of interest


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• DeafHear provides a range of services to over 32,500 Deaf and Hard of Hearing people and their families annually. It also has a wider impact on the lives of all Deaf and Hard of Hearing people in Ireland through advocacy and campaigning for improved health and education services, and for better access to society for all.


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Established in 1964 some of their achievements to-date are:1967 NRB Audiology Service (HSE)1970/72 Rubella Vaccine1972 News for the Deaf1979 First ISL Dictionary in Ireland1988 HINTS (Teletext Service)1991 Deaftech1992 News for the Deaf in Sign Language /

Sign On / Hands On1994 Part M Building Regulations1995 Family Support Service1998 Signlink1998/99 NAD/UCD Aural Rehabilitation Course


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2000 – 2009Mental Health & Deafness ServiceDisability ActSubtitlingSigned PerformancesCampaigns:

» UNHS» Audiology» Education» Access» Hearing Care Services


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2010• 17,335 clients• 6,001 individual cases• 11,334 General

Resource Centre Drop-ins


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Two Independent Surveys…

• Living in the Community (DeafHear.ie 2009)

• Where’s Our Loop (IHHA 2010)


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Living in the Community (1)

In 2009, DeafHear initiated a research project to evaluate the impact of hearing loss on the daily lives of those affected to help raise awareness of the issues involved and in turn, to highlight actions that can be taken to improve the quality of daily living for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people.


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Living in the Community (2)

• The following slides will show places where communication difficulties are encountered on a daily basis by Deaf and Hard of Hearing people, places which could benefit from having a loop system installed:

• 180 people replied to the national survey


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0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Family - 48%

Friends - 51%

Strangers - 78%

Communication Difficulties


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0

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20

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40

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60

70

No Difficulites -43%

Difficult - 36%

Very Difficult -21%

Difficulties Communicating with Family Doctor


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Difficult - 46%

Very Difficult -37%

Difficulties Communicating in Hospitals


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Difficult - 44%

Very Difficult -24%

Difficulties Communicating inPost Offices / Banks


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Difficult - 38%

Very Difficult -25%

Difficulties Communicating in Shops


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Difficult - 37%

Very Difficult -41%

Difficulties Communicating with Teachers


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Difficult - 39%

Very Difficult -32%

Difficulties Communicating with Manager/Boss


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Difficult - 41%

Very Difficult -34%

Difficulties Communicating with Gardaí (Police)


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No Difficulites -20 %

Difficult - 33%

Very Difficult -47%

Difficulties Communicating in Airports


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Difficult - 41%

Very Difficult -36%

Difficulties Communicating in Trains / Taxis / Buses


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Summary of Living in the Community

Survey

• Evidence of the experience of Deaf and Hard of Hearing people.

• Survey is not scientific, but has reliability• Clear message: consistently high levels of

difficulty with communication• Concern re employment, communication

with teachers• Need to use the evidence we have!• Need to do more research!


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Where’s Our Loop?

• Late 2010

• 55 locations

• 7 members of the IHHA

• 28 sites – public service providers

• 27 sites – private service providers


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Loop Availability on Public Sites

• Only half the public sites had a loop system. However, of the sites that had a loop, almost two thirds were either not working at all or were not satisfactory due to poor sound quality. In fact only 18% of the total number of public sites surveyed had a loop system that was working satisfactorily.

Loop availability on Public Sites

18%

50%

14%

18%

No Loop Installed Loop Not working

Loop Unsatisfactory Loop working Well


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Loop Availability on Private Sites• The picture for private sites was

marginally better, but it must be borne in mind that private sites were selected on the basis that such businesses had some track record of providing loop systems for their customers.

• The key findings were that 44% of the private sites had no loop system available, 19% had a loop system that was not working satisfactorily, and 37% had a loop system that was satisfactory

Loop availability on Private Sites

44%

15%4%

37%

No Loop Installed Loop Not working

Loop Unsatisfactory Loop working Well


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Loop Signage

• The survey also assessed the availability of signage to indicate that a loop was available, and what this might mean!

• There is an internationally recognised symbol to indicate that a loop system has been installed.

• Can we rely on the sign in Dublin?


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Signage on Public Sites


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Signage on Private Sites


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Staff Awareness:

Poor staff awareness about loop systems especially on private sites but researchers treated respectfully.

More awareness on public sites but also a higher incidence of a lack of respect shown to researchers.


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Key Survey Findings:

• Almost half the sites in the survey had NO loop system available.

• Just over a quarter of sites had a satisfactory loop system.

• One in six sites had erected a loop sign, but had no loop system.

• Less than one in four staff had knowledge of loop systems.


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Induction Loops:Fact & Figures (1)

• An induction Loop system works by converting sound into an electromagnetic signal and transmitting this signal via a loop to induction coil in the listener’s hearing aid, where it is converted back into sound. The effect is to eliminate background noise and enhance sound quality.

• Not every hearing aid user finds induction loops useful.• An induction loop may be portable or permanent. A

small portable loop system costs approximately €200; a permanent counter loop system suitable for a counter or reception area costs approximately €500 fully installed; while a loop for a large building such as a church or cinema could cost €2-3,000.


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Induction Loops:Fact & Figures (2)

• The new building regulations state that induction loops should be designed, installed and commissioned to comply with the International Standard IEC 60118-4.

• Some individuals may find that a personal loop listener is very useful depending on their situation. These are on view and can be demonstrated on DeafHear premises throughout the country.


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Useful Websites:

• www.deafhear.ie

• www.ihha.ie

http://www.deafhear.ie/

http://www.ihha.ie/


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Any Questions????

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