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Trustee Induction & Networking Day
21 March 2006
To be held at Britannia Street Conference Centre, London. For all Chairs, Trustees and Chief Executives of organisations working with deaf people, an opportunity for new trustees to learn about their responsibilities and for experienced trustees to bring their knowledge up to date. A unique opportunity to meet trustees from other organisations working with deaf people and to share experiences with each other. Guest Speakers:
Sue Smith , Policy Adviser at the Charity Commission. Sue will give a brief overview of the roles and responsibilities of Trustees, will describe the Charity Commission's approach to regulation and support, and provide an update on some key areas of policy development.
Kate Aldous , Manager of the NCVO Collaborative Working Unit. The Unit offers information to organisations considering any type of joint working, ranging from sharing facilities or providing a joint service, to full mergers. This session will cover the issues that Trustees need to be aware of when considering working with other organisations.
In the afternoon, in response to feedback from last year’s very successful Trustee Induction and Networking Day, there will be more informal sessions enabling greater discussion and networking. Sessions facilitated by UK Council on Deafness Trustees and staff will include:
For further details about attending or exhibiting please contact Jenny Hitchen - j.hitchen@deafcouncil.org.uk
1st - 7th May 2006 is Deaf Awareness Week and organisations working with deaf people across the country are inviting everyone to 'Look At Me'. The theme aims to improve understanding of the different types of deafness by highlighting the many different methods of communication used by deaf, deafened, deafblind and hard of hearing people, such as sign language and lipreading. Supported by over one hundred deaf charities and organisations Deaf Awareness Week involves a UK wide series of national and local events. "UK Council on Deafness are delighted to be coordinating the all-inclusive Deaf Awareness Week campaign, promoting better communication and social inclusion and raising awareness of the huge range of local organisations that support deaf people and their family and friends."
We are very grateful to our sponsors for 2006:
Please send us details of your Deaf Awareness Week events so that they can be publicised on the campaign website at www.Look-At-Me.org.uk
Access to Communication in English
The Access to Communication in English (ACE) coalition have produced a series of booklets and leaflets to support the aims of the campaign, copies are available from UK Council on Deafness:
Providing access to communication in English for Deaf People: Your duties under the DDA – A guide for service providers, employers and trade organisations explains service providers’ obligations to provide communication support.
Careers as a Language Service Professional – working with deaf people is a simple guide for people considering working as a Language Service Professional
Providing access to communication in English for deaf people: Your rights to communication support under the DDA is a guide to inform deaf people of their rights and what they need to do in order to ensure services provide the right support.
All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness
A delegation from the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness visited the Charing Cross Audiology Department on Wednesday 1 February 2006. Charing Cross was one f the first 50 sites to join the MHAS programme and started fitting digital hearing aids in Spring 2003. A report of the visit will be available on the Group’s website at www.appg-deafness.org.uk shortly.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group on Deafness meeting on Tuesday 17 January 2006 with Anne McGuire MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary (Disabled People) unfortunately had to be called off at short notice because of other parliamentary commitments. The meeting will be rescheduled and the new date announced shortly.
The Honorary Officers of the Group will be meeting in February to decide the topics to be covered at the next meetings.
CALL FOR PAPERS – 2006 BSMHD Annual Conference Newcastle
Abstracts of papers for consideration by the conference committee are requested on any subject relating to Mental Health and Deafness. The BSMHD 2006 Annual Conference will be held on Thursday 25 May 2006 at the Royal Station Hotel, Newcastle. All presentations will be plenary sessions, presented in front of all conference delegates in a theatre style. The official languages for presentations will be English and British Sign Language. Simultaneous interpreting will be provided for all sessions between English and British Sign Language. Abstracts must be submitted by email attachment in text, not PowerPoint, (.doc, .txt, .rtf) to conference@bsmhd.org.uk by 10 March 2006. The conference subcommittee will select the most appropriate presentations and a decision will be made by 31 March 2006. Full papers will be required by 12 May 2006 to give time for the communication support team to prepare for your presentation. There will also be a small exhibition attached to the conference, organisations interested in booking exhibition space please contact Jenny Hitchen, the conference organiser, at j.hitchen@deafcouncil.org.uk .
Communication with your doctor made easy
Deaf patients and their doctors no longer have to worry about how to communicate with each other when an interpreter is not available. The charity Sign, thanks to Department of Health funding, is launching SignHealth – a web-based software package for use in doctor’s surgeries. At the click of a button, doctors, nurses, receptionists and patients will be able to instantly select from a number of specially designed questions on the screen which are linked to video clips of someone signing the question. The deaf patient can answer “yes” or “no”, but sometimes choose from a list of answers. Information sheets can be printed and given to the patient. Details of how to take medications can also be printed, as can information on useful organisations. The program is also available in 12 other languages for those with limited English. The program is not a replacement for an interpreter, but when no interpreter is available it is an essential aid. Steve Powell, Chief Executive of Sign, says, “SignHealth will enable deaf people to gain easier access to healthcare and prove an invaluable tool to doctors in the diagnosing of illness and prescribing of treatment for deaf patients. At present we know that 60% of deaf people visit a doctor with no communication support so we see this as a real step forward. We would like to see this being used in doctors’ practices across the country and urge people who have a hearing impairment to ask that it is available for use when they visit their GP.” From the beginning of February, all Primary Care Trusts in England will have access to the program and Sign hopes that over the next few months doctors’ surgeries in England will be using the SignHealth software with their patients. A demonstration can be viewed by anyone by going to www.signhealth.com (username: deafcommunity, password: demo). For more details, contact SignHealth: Telephone 01494 687619 Minicom 01494 687626 Fax 01494 687622 e-mail info@signhealth.com
Samaritans Text Messaging Support Service
Following a successful trial the Samaritans Text Messaging Support Service will continue to operate on 07725 90 90 90 each evening between 6pm and 10pm. There are plans to introduce a 24 hour 7 days a week service shortly.
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