Thousands of deaf people 'missing out on NHS care in national scandal' - report

Thousands of people who are deaf or have are missing out on care due to communication difficulties, a report suggests. Some 15 million people in England are deaf or have hearing loss, including six million who would have difficulty in noisy environments. Health and social care services are required by law to offer extra support for those needing to access care.

But the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID) and SignHealth have warned that widespread failings mean they are too often left in the dark about their own health. An online survey of more than 1,000 people who are deaf or have hearing loss found one in four had avoided seeking help for a new health concern.

One in 10 said they had avoided calling an ambulance or attending A&E, and one in seven felt their health was being put at risk due to lack of communication support.

Of those who had experienced a lack of support, a third said this had led to a failure to understand their diagnosis. A quarter said it meant they could not understand how to take a medication or treatment.

And almost half said they had given up trying to make an appointment (47%) or had missed an appointment (21%).

Dr Natasha Wilcock, a deaf doctor who works in palliative care, said problems with communication had led to some patients not understanding their diagnoses.

She said: "Legally, professionally and ethically, deaf insight training should be compulsory for all doctors. Right now, the experiences of deaf people and people with hearing loss are shocking.

"I have met patients who have been referred to palliative care services who have not understood that they will no longer be receiving cancer treatment - they haven't understood that they are dying."

The charities described the situation as a "hidden scandal" and called on the Government to stop lives being put at risk.

Crystal Rolfe, director of health at RNID, said: "Imagine not being able to understand a diagnosis, or having to rely on a family member to tell you that you're seriously ill or even dying.

"The horrifying truth is that too many deaf people in England today don't have to imagine it - it's happening to them in real life."

Ms Rolfe said the NHS was "systematically discriminating against people who are deaf or have hearing loss: it's a national scandal".

She added: "It is time to give deaf people more access and control over their physical and mental healthcare. We are calling on Ministers to bring NHS accessibility into the 21st century.

"The government needs to urgently address these issues, make staff training mandatory and overhaul current NHS systems, so that everyone can access their own health information in a way that makes sense - equal access to healthcare is a human right."

An NHS spokesperson said experiences described in the report were "shocking and unacceptable".

They added: "All NHS services have a legal duty to provide clear and appropriate methods of communication to ensure that patients, including those with a sensory impairment, such as hearing loss, and their families or carers can fully understand everything they need to about their treatment and care.

"NHS England is committed to meeting its responsibilities with the accessible information standard and will continue to support organisations to ensure it is implemented in a consistent way - including with the upcoming publication of a new patient safety framework highlighting the importance of ensuring people's communication support needs are met."