Speaking Medicine in the Silent Language: Experience with a Deaf Patient in Sri Lanka

Abstract

Being deaf can pose challenges in everyday living, due to the fact that most deaf people cannot effectively communicate with the majority of non-deaf people in society. Effective communication plays a vital role when seeking medical services. As a developing nation, there have been several steps taken in Sri Lanka to bridge the communication gap between deaf and non-deaf people. Nevertheless, there is still a need to introduce a cost-effective communication system in governmental healthcare services. This experience highlights the importance of bridging the gap between healthcare providers and deaf patients, and suggests possible cost-effective ways to provide better quality healthcare services.

Keywords

• Sign Language
• Deaf Population
• Medical Service
• Communication