Statement on Accessible Communication for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People during COVID-19 Pandemic
Temas
Detalles
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought about important public health officials from many countries making unprecedented decisions which have had significant impacts on people’s lives. The International Federation of Hard of Hearing People (IFHOH), International Federation of Hard of Hearing Young People (IFHOHYP), The World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) and its youth section, the World Federation of the Deaf Youth Section (WFDYS) welcome measures taken to ensure public safety. Facial coverings and social distancing are two common protection strategies that pose barriers for deaf and hard of hearing people. In addition to linguistic input, deaf and hard of hearing people rely heavily on facial expressions, speechreading and other visual input to support our understanding of conversation partners.