Office of Deaf Services
Stephanie Winslow,
Director
(573) 522-3074
Have a question related to deaf or hard or hearing services for the Department of Mental Health? Contact us at deafservices@dmh.mo.gov
Services to Deaf People
Guiding Principles
1. Deaf people represent a unique cultural minority group, not a group of people with a disability.
2. Deaf people have a right to receive mental health services in their preferred language from a mental health professional fluent in their language, and aware of cultural uniqueness of the Deaf Community.
3. Deaf people have a right to live and receive treatment in the least restrictive environment as defined by the consumer, not the mental health system.
4. Mental health providers serving this population need to be closely networked with each other, as well as integrated into the larger systems of care in Missouri.
5. Mental health services are desperately needed by virtually all families in Missouri with Deaf children under the age of 18. Some of these families need information/referral only while others require comprehensive therapeutic family, parenting, language development and child-centered services.
6. Inpatient services for Deaf people, when needed, should be provided in a single, barrier-free psychiatric treatment facility, regardless of the client's home location. In the Deaf Community, community is not defined geographically, but linguistically, and services which are culturally and linguistically appropriate are sought out, regardless of geographic, city, county, or regional "barriers".
7. Most "inpatient commitments" can be prevented by offering supervised community-based options which are barrier-free. Short-term, acute care circumstances will typically be the only reason for inpatient services.
8. In Missouri, most adults who need DMH services (in all three divisions) live on SSI and rely on Medicaid/Medicare for their mental health treatment. The barriers artificially imposed on the use of these services frequently result in Deaf people being excluded from treatment and need to be eliminated systemically.
9. Most Deaf people cannot communicate well through lip reading or in English (whether written or read). Such solutions satisfy only culturally unaware systems and providers - not meeting the needs of the most vulnerable populations.
10. Services to Deaf racial, ethnic, religious, and sexual minorities are virtually non-existent in the State and must be developed along with the larger Deaf Systems of Care in Missouri.
11. Deaf people have a right to housing options of their choice, which best meet the language and cultural needs of the consumers.
12. Various forms of technology are available and need to be utilized more effectively in reaching rural and underserved Deaf consumers.
13. Interpreters, as a service bridge, should be used only as a last resort, rather than the first solution sought by providers.
14. A state-wide advisory group needs to be convened to provide program directions and priorities.
15. Service teams, including psychologists, social workers, counselors, case managers and Peer Support specialists need to be assembled regionally, to serve Deaf communities within a reasonable driving distance, based on realistic population estimates.
16. Regional advisory groups need be established in the larger centers of Deaf activity, such as Fulton/Columbia, Kansas City, St. Louis and Springfield.
The above "Guiding Principles" can be found in the Office of Services to Deaf and Hard of Hearing People Plan - "Revisiting the Dream: Proposing a Comprehensive Treatment Model for Deaf, Deaf/Blind and Hard of Hearing People who have Psychiatric Disorders, Mental Retardation (Developmental Disabilities) and Substance Abuse Disorders".
Comments
received from the Deaf Community at Mental Health Commission Public Hearings
- May, 2006
Services
to Deaf and Hard of Hearing People, presentation by Barry Critchfield
at the Mental Health Commission Meeting, July 13, 2006
