Reaching the Hearing Impaired Via Video Conferencing

Posted by KBZ Blogging Team

Video conferencing has become a common tool in many businesses.  While it can streamline communications, hearing impaired individuals have often been left out.  This is a sizable group: more than 30 million Americans are deaf or hearing impaired.  TANDBERG, now part of Cisco, has worked with companies, such as Deaf Link, to develop video conferencing services for those individuals, so this area is undergoing significant growth. One reason for the interest is that businesses need to be able to communicate with deaf and hard of hearing customers in order to comply with government regulations.  For instance, the Federal Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 mandates equal access for individuals with disabilities.

Founded in 1989, Deaf Link Inc. offers various video conferencing services, so companies can exchange information with deaf or hearing impaired individuals.  The company relies on TANDBERG videoconferencing interpretation services, as well as a call center to make American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters available to people who need help communicating.  Through the service deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals can exchange information with employees at organizations of any type without delays or scheduling requirements.

Deaf Link has more than 80 clients who consist of a mix of US health care providers, nonprofit organizations, government agencies and private businesses.  Its services have several possible applications, like helping health care providers communicate with deaf individuals or deaf parents with children to determine if the patient has a potential medical issue (an allergy to penicillin, etc.).

Video conferencing has several advantages compared to other methods of communicating with deaf and hearing impaired individuals.  Getting an ASL interpreter to a site can sometimes take up to an hour or more depending on a business’s location.  Also, these services can be expensive.  Christus Santa Rosa Health Care in San Antonio, Texas was spending about $3,200 for in-person ASL translators each month, but cut its expenses to $1,400 per month by using the Deaf Link service.

Because of such benefits, the use of video conferencing among the deaf and hearing impaired is increasing, and TANDBERG is playing a key role in this transformation.

Paul Korzeniowski
KBZ Blogging Team