For the deaf, technology can make health care access worse

PROVO, Utah (AP) — Kim Smith knew from the start that video remote interpreting was going to become a problem.

“I remember seeing that and thinking that is not going to work,” Smith, who is deaf, said in American Sign Language, according to a spoken English interpreter.

Smith is the co-leader of Utah Deaf Hospital Rights, a Facebook group that has gained more than 700 supporters and held a town hall and protest. She is also the president of the Utah Association of the Deaf.

Hospitals nationwide have begun using video remote interpreting, or VRI technology, to fulfill the “reasonable accommodation” portion of the American with Disabilities Act. But with small screens, unreliable Wi-Fi connections and devices that are hard to move around beds, many deaf individuals say that technology has made trying to seek and communicate about medical help worse, not better.

About two to three of every 1,000 children born in the United States have detectable hearing loss, according to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders. Around 15% of American adults report trouble hearing, with hearing loss becoming more common later in life. There are no available statistics on how many deaf individuals use ASL nationwide.

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Starting a movement

Smith first became aware of nationwide issues with hospitals and interpretation after her mother had a brain aneurysm 22 years ago in Florida. Smith, who was her mother’s caretaker, requested an interpreter. It was denied under the reasoning that her mother, the patient, was hearing.

“I am the communicator in this situation,” Smith said. “I am involved.”

They transferred Smith’s mother to another hospital for surgery, which also denied the request. Without an interpreter, Smith was left in the dark...