British Deaf Association campaign highlights unique needs of Deaf BSL signers with dementia during Dementia Action Week 2022
The British Deaf Association is marking Dementia Action Week 2022 with a campaign to raise awareness of the unique social, cultural and linguistic needs of Deaf British Sign Language signers living with dementia.
The campaign will highlight two key pieces of work led by the BDA Scotland, the Deaf Dementia Research Project and the Transforming the Deaf Dementia Experience Project.
The Deaf Dementia Research Project
In March 2022, the BDA published the findings of the Deaf Dementia Research Project, funded by the Life Changes Trust and led by BDA Scotland in partnership with SORD (Social Research with Deaf people) at the University of Manchester. The project aimed to find out how to improve care homes for Deaf people with dementia.
The report, “Deaf people with dementia and care homes in Scotland”, found that care home providers and staff often did not understand the unique social, cultural and linguistic needs of Deaf people with dementia whose first language is British Sign Language (BSL).
Some of the report’s recommendations included:
- creating guidelines for best care for Deaf people with dementia in care homes
- employing Deaf BSL staff
- training more Deaf BSL cultural advocates and befrienders
- improving BSL and Deaf Awareness training for care home providers
- enhancing inspection to include specific cultural elements relating to Deaf people, and
- providing information about care home options in an accessible BSL format.
Find out more here: bda.org.uk/dementiaresearch
The Transforming the Deaf Dementia Experience Project
The Transforming the Deaf Dementia Experience Project is a community interest initiative that supports Deaf people living with dementia and their carers.
The project aims to promote a better understanding of dementia by developing accessible resources, information, and toolkits in British Sign Language (BSL).
The dedicated BDA dementia website includes a Dementia Toolkit and a series of 9 dementia videos developed with the University of Stirling on how to make your home more dementia-friendly for Deaf people.
Find out more here: bda.org.uk/dementia and here: bda.org.uk/dementiatoolkit
Avril Hepner, BDA Scotland Manager, said:
“Dementia presents unique challenges for the Deaf community in the UK. Often, a Deaf person living with dementia is the only BSL signer in the care home where they live, meaning they are not able to communicate with staff or other residents. This can have a detrimental effort on their mental health and wellbeing, not to mention the practical implications of not being able to communicate with those caring for them.
The March 2022 report, “Deaf people with dementia and care homes in Scotland”, identified the urgent need for greater awareness and understanding of the unique social, cultural and linguistic needs of Deaf BSL users among care home providers and staff.
The Scottish Government’s BSL National Plan 2017-2023 (goal 41) requires the government to:
Work with local authorities, providers and service users to improve the way that adult social care is delivered, including how residential care is commissioned and how care and support is delivered to people at home. The voices and experiences of service users, including BSL users, will be at the centre of these reforms and will shape planning and implementation and improve outcomes.
There is still some way to go to meet that goal.”
ENDS
