Thirty-two Connecticut hospitals agreed on June 26 with the Justice Department's recommendations to set up the first statewide system of round-the-clock sign language interpreters for patients who are deaf or hard of hearing. The case should serve as a clarion call to any hospital not providing this service.
The agreement should resolve a class action lawsuit filed by the Connecticut Office of Protection and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities, last month, alleging that the state's hospitals were violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by failing to provide sign language interpreters.
The hospitals agreed to:
- Set up a statewide on-call system to provide qualified sign language and oral interpreters 24 hours a day, seven days a week through Family Services Woodfield (FSW), a non-profit agency in Bridgeport, Conn.
- Provide telecommunications devices that enable the hearing impaired to use public telephones throughout the hospitals and, if requested, in patient rooms.
- Add visual alarms where audible ones exist now.
- Train emergency, psychiatric and social workers.
- Post signs advising that sign language interpreters and other aids for the hearing impaired are available for free.
- Offer training to all doctors.
Fourteen hospitals will pay compensation in the amount of $333,000 to 54 deaf, hard of hearing or other people affected by the past lack of effective communication.
The state's Office of Protection and Advocacy originally brought the class action suit against 10 hospitals. The Justice Department intervened and 22 other hospitals voluntarily joined as defendants in order to participate in the shared initiative to provide interpreters and avoid future liability.
In other markets, lawsuits were brought against the Maine Medical Center (MMC) in Portland, Maine, and Jersey City Medical Center (JCMC) in Jersey City, N.J.
Under an agreement approved in May by the Justice Department, MMC will provide sign language and oral interpreters for hospital workers to communicate with the deaf or hearing impaired.
But JCMC is paying the largest settlement ever over failure to provide sign language interpreters - $700,000 to four deaf people.
Federal law has required sign language interpreters in hospitals since 1973.
(FSW, 203/368-4300; Connecticut Office of Protection 860/297-4300)
Conn. Hospitals Providing Sign Language Interpretation
- William M. Backus Hospital
- Bradley Memorial Hospital
- Bridgeport Hospital
- Bristol Hospital
- Conn. Children's Medical Center
- The Danbury Hospital
- Day Kimball Hospital
- Greenwich Hospital
- The Griffin Hospital
- Hartford Hospital
- The Charlotte Hungerford Hospital
- John Dempsey Hospital
- Johnson Memorial Hospital
- Lawrence & Memorial Hospital
- Manchester Memorial Hospital
- Middlesex Memorial Hospital
- Milford Hospital
- New Britain General Hospital
- New Milford Hospital
- Norwalk Hospital
- Rockville General Hospital
- Saint Francis Hospital
- St. Joseph Medical Center
- St. Mary's Hospital
- Hospital of St. Raphael
- St. Vincent's Medical Center
- Sharon Hospital
- The Stamford Hospital
- Veterans Memorial Medical Center
- Waterbury Hospital
- Windham Hospital
- Yale-New Haven Hospital
Source: Connecticut Office of Protection and Advocacy