Lack of sign language interpreters "isolating" deaf people, says Eastbourne charity
It's after an inquest concluded the death of a deaf TikTok star from Brighton was influenced by a "failure by mental health services to manage her risk"
An Eastbourne hearing charity is warning a lack of sign language interpreters is "isolating" deaf people, after the inquest into a deaf Brighton woman finds there was a "failure by mental health services" to manage her risk.
Imogen Nunn died in her flat in January 2023, after taking a "poisonous substance."
The 25-year-old had amassed over 780,000 followers on social media app TikTok, raising awareness about both hearing and mental health.
Senior Coroner Penelope Schofield said that failure to put in place an appropriate care plan, safeguarding measures and arrange a face-to-face mental health appointment contributed to her death.
She added her conclusion "is on a background of systemic longstanding and well-documented challenges in the provision of mental health for death patients, with particular emphasis on the national shortage of BSL interpreters, and the difficulty this presents for patients to be able to communicate their distress when their mental health is deteriorating, or they'e in crisis."
Lack of support leading to decline in deaf people's mental and physical health
Mark Dimmock, the Co-Chief Executive of East Sussex Hearing, said a lack of support is leading to the decline in "mental and physical health" of people who are deaf and hard of hearing:
"They find it just too much of a struggle to do day-to-day tasks that the rest of us would take for granted.
"And that's particularly around issues such as accessing healthcare.
GP surgeries phoning up deaf patients, alleges charity
"Constantly in the charity, we have people that come to us where they're marked down as, for example, being profoundly deaf and BSL users and the GP surgery will still phone them up.
"There doesn't seem to be any provision."
The charity, which do training courses on hearing and deaf awareness and BSL, said health practitioners need to be encouraged to use them:
"Technology out there now that can assist people even on your smartphone.
"So clinicians, for example, can use apps with BSL interpretation live transcribe.
Deaf people "deserve better"
"Technology marches on and it hasn't forgotten people that have got hearing loss and it's just getting it out there to public bodies - and public bodies need to do better on this.
"They need to work with us and our fellow first sector organisations and improve the lives of these people with who are deaf or have got hearing loss.
They deserve better."
"Inconsistencies" in provision of interpreters
Various reports since 2014 have showed that deaf people experience significant health disparities and "nothing really has changed" and the the deaf community still feels it is "ignored".
Report author Theresa Thomas-Morton, the NRCPD chief executive who has 25 years experience as a registered sign language interpreter, said there may be "isolated cases where trusts have really worked hard" to make a difference, but added: "There are still inconsistencies in provision of interpreters in health appointments.
"There hasn't been significant improvement in terms of information regarding health or engagement with the deaf community around their health, or health improvements, or improving their lived outcomes."
More sign language interpreters and communication professionals are needed but there are also "systemic issues" which make it difficult for interpreters to be assigned to bookings, "especially at late notice and especially in a crisis situation", she said.