Practitioners urged to meet needs of deaf

A spokesman for Sense, which works on behalf of the deaf and blind, claimed that deaf and hard of hearing people were more likely to avoid visiting their optometrist because they worried about procedures, such as the insertion of eye drops, 'which are frequently carried out without any advance warning'. A guide to attending practice for people who are deaf or hard of hearing has been launched by Sense and is available to practitioners free of charge. It follows research which found that those with hearing difficulties were two-and-a-half times more likely to have visual defects than those with no hearing problems. Sense has produced 23,000 copies of the 12-page guide, Going to the Opticians. The leaflet includes step-by-step explanations of what is involved during an eye examination. The guide also deals with preparing for an appointment, and states who is entitled to free or reduced charges for examinations. Optometrists did not always appreciate that deaf and hard of hearing people communicate via lip reading or sign language, Sense has stated. The guide has drawn on experiences of many deaf and hard of hearing people. They include those with Usher syndrome, a moderate to profound congenital condition which results in hearing loss, poor balance and retinitis pigmentosa. Lucy Drescher, resources development officer at Sense, said: 'A significant proportion of people with hearing loss often found opticians frightening places or have been put off from going because they didn't know what was going on and what was being done to them.' A study carried out by Lucian Regenbogen & Victor Godel, and published in the Journal of Paediatric Ophthalmology & Strabismus (Nov/Dec 1985) added to Sense's conclusion that more than twice as many people who are deaf and hard of hearing suffer visual defects compared to those hearing people.