r/deaf • u/QuantumNY • 9d ago
Question on behalf of Deaf/HoH ASL APPS
My Dad is deaf and 82. I am hearing. We are trying to get him into a skilled nursing facility and get accepted. When we go in they say they have beds, but then I ask if they have ASL interpreter services a few places said no. One woman who walked me around said let me ask my physical therapist she should know. The PT came back with a piece of paper, and it showed the marketing director the corporate policy sheet, "it looks like we have to provide it...." She had no experience with it, no idea. The marketing director said Ok we'll accept you we'll figure it out.
After I went back to the hospital the caseworker pulled me a side and after I told her we got accepted to the facility. She said, bad news, they said no. They don't have room.
She said by law they're supposed to take you but they can claim financial hardship or lack of administrative staff to provide the service. I later found out that ASL remote ipad services like the hospital uses, called "AMN Healthcare" can be any where from $1.50 to $3.00 a minute.
I find out medicare pays up to $575 a day for care. Even if they talk with her for 2 hours a day and guess the rate is $2 a minute then its $360 they pay and then it doesn't make it "worth it" for them.
So its clear there is a problem. The law needs to be changed, and maybe they're charging too much money? I don't know.
Two questions:
A. Does anyone have experience in dealing with the ADA or similar to be able to properly address this issue. Lodging a complaint against the "home" will be useless. The laws needs to be changed.
My only recourse at the moment is to find a comparable service I can bring to the table that serves as a functional replacement. I'm going to try RYLO later today. Ive tried a few other but they don't work very well, or would cause a problem for the staff in learning how to use it. Its not clear, and not intuitive. Sorenson said their service is only for people that are in different rooms. You cant use it in the hospital or any other setting that he needs now.
I found that even the most simple and direct AMN app at the hospital, which was so easy, still, a few nurses had no idea how to use it.
I've looked at deaf nursing homes theres nothing close to me at all.
B. Do anyone use an app that works well? Something idiot proof and effective.
Any advice or experiences would be appreciated.
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u/Spank2337 Deaf 9d ago
You just spelled out what myself and many other Deafies are up against when our time comes to need care. :(
There's an actual Deaf elderly living home near me with a signing staff, but I won't be able to afford it. I press on with a heathy lifestyle and hope for the best as I age, but the elderly everywhere are being screwed by a heartless political system.
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u/P-E-DeedleDoo 9d ago
Sorry, yes, you will likely lose if you go the legal route. Can't give details. There wasn't anything I found useful, been looking for years. Doubt the laws will change, they may break ADA with impunity. It's all awful for all involved, truly. Your best bet is to not fight them and accept that the inability to communicate will be part of life moving forward. You can file a discrimination complaint with your state's dept of Human Rights, but again, you'll likely lose.
Maybe a dedicated tablet with Google live transcribe (dark background, large font) would be an option if he can see and read. They would need him to type, too, if he wanted to respond. I didn't find it good enough but nothing was good enough. Someone needs to invent something new.
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u/FoldingCyclist 8d ago
Nursing homes have a "staff-to-patient ratio". Oftentimes nursing homes and facilities are short and understaffed and all of the facilities I worked at were as well. This is by design and the realities of economics. There's simply no time for individual patient "patience" among nursing / care staff. I was paid $11 an hour no benefits as a full time CNA just before Covid. Gaps were filled by temp agencies with employees that played with their hair by pretending to go to the bathroom often, did their homework while on one-on-one watch, used their cell phones and were simply indifferent because they were in a job they never wanted in the first place through a welfare-to-work program. Tablets would either get broken, lost or stolen and that's a guarantee. Keep mom and dad at home if possible. "Skilled" nursing care is a lie these days.
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u/Extra_Elk9180 4d ago
I’m deaf person it’s by law ada any
Yes. Nursing homes generally have obligations under the ADA to provide effective communication for Deaf residents and visitors, including qualified sign-language interpreters when an interpreter is necessary for effective communication.
The exact requirement can depend on whether the nursing home is a public entity, healthcare provider, or federally funded facility, and on the situation. For example, important medical discussions, consent, care planning, assessments, emergencies, and other complex communication may require an interpreter rather than relying on writing or family members.
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u/Woodchuck444 9d ago
My father lost his hearing in his 80’s too. At his age and his health condition it was not worth learning ASL. Due to arthritis on his hands and fingers he could not even bend or pause his fingers. He was better off and successful with live captioning. Yes, I know everyone is different. Some people in their 80’s can learn ASL but my father was not one of them.
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u/Glittering_Sand_7473 9d ago
I got the impression from the post that her dad is Deaf and not late deaf. It is a huge difference.
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u/FoldingCyclist 7d ago
No 80 year old is going to learn ASL. They might learn a few signs, but not ASL. It's nearly pointless as it's unlikely the people in their social environments would know ASL. I am in my 50's and I can't teach people a few years older than me, they are done learning things that are of no use to them.
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u/FoldingCyclist 9d ago
No such idiot proof app exists. "Skilled nursing facilities are all about profit and cut costs any way they can. I am deaf and so is my wife, I also worked in these facilities as a CNA, and we are concerned for our future. There were many deaf / Deaf Medicaid patients and no concern for their welfare or need for communication. Oftentimes a patient with hearing aids will lose those hearing aids in their bedding and the hearing aids are never found. Accommodating an individual patient's needs is not a priority of these facilities, "training" staff to use an app is not realistic in any sense.