1. 2 nd International Hearing Loop Conference Washington DC, June 2011 Consumer Advocacy Around the World: The Irish Perspective Emma McAuley DeafHear.ie/IHHA

2. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 2 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’…

3. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 3 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) IHHA Brief CV!!...

4. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 4 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 25 th Anniversary celebrated in 2011

5. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 5 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 Irish Hard of Hearing Association (IHHA)

6. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 6 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 Irish Hard of Hearing Association (IHHA)

7. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 7 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.

8. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 8 Established in 1964 some of their achievements to-date are: 1967NRB Audiology Service (HSE) 1970/72 Rubella Vaccine 1972News for the Deaf 1979 First ISL Dictionary in Ireland 1988HINTS (Teletext Service) 1991Deaftech 1992News for the Deaf in Sign Language / Sign On / Hands On 1994Part M Building Regulations 1995Family Support Service 1998Signlink 1998/99NAD/UCD Aural Rehabilitation Course

9. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 9 2000 – 2009 Mental Health & Deafness Service Disability Act Subtitling Signed Performances Campaigns: »UNHS »Audiology »Education »Access »Hearing Care Services

10. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 10 2010 17,335 clients 6,001 individual cases 11,334 General Resource Centre Drop-ins

11. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 11 Two Independent Surveys… Living in the Community (DeafHear.ie 2009) Where’s Our Loop (IHHA 2010)

12. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 12 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.

13. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 13 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

14. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 14 Communication Difficulties

15. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 15 Difficulties Communicating with Family Doctor

16. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 16 Difficulties Communicating in Hospitals

17. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 17 Difficulties Communicating in Post Offices / Banks

18. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 18 Difficulties Communicating in Shops

19. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 19 Difficulties Communicating with Teachers

20. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 20 Difficulties Communicating with Manager/Boss

21. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 21 Difficulties Communicating with Gardaí (Police)

22. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 22 Difficulties Communicating in Airports

23. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 23 Difficulties Communicating in Trains / Taxis / Buses

24. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 24 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!

25. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 25 Where’s Our Loop? Late 2010 55 locations 7 members of the IHHA 28 sites – public service providers 27 sites – private service providers

26. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 26 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.

27. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 27 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

28. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 28 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?

29. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 29 Signage on Public Sites

30. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 30 Signage on Private Sites

31. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 31 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.

32. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 32 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.

33. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 33 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.

34. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 34 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.

35. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 35 Useful Websites: www.deafhear.ie www.ihha.ie

36. 2nd International Hearing Loop Conference - June 2011 36 Any Questions????