We estimate that there are over 10 million people in the UK who may benefit from reasonable adjustments or communication support to access healthcare services, due to being deaf or having hearing loss. However, this need is often unmet, with severe consequences. We’ve reviewed the published research, gathered stories of lived experience, conducted original social research, and set out the changes we want to see....
✦ The floor
Discussion
Signed responses from readers of the wire.
Clinicians working in UK healthcare settings should audit whether their communication support provisions (e.g., loop systems, BSL interpreters, captioning) meet legal reasonable-adjustment duties; this evidence pack provides advocacy material but does not introduce new clinical protocols.
This resource consolidates the scale of unmet communication need across NHS services, giving audiologists and advocates a robust evidence base to push for systemic change.
- 01RNID estimates 10+ million UK people need reasonable adjustments or communication support to access healthcare.
- 02Unmet communication needs in NHS settings are characterised as frequent and avoidable.
- 03The pack is designed as an advocacy and lobbying tool, not a clinical guideline.
- 04Severe health consequences are linked directly to inaccessible communication in care settings.
- 05Covers deaf people and those with hearing loss across all NHS service types.
Over 10 million people in the UK need reasonable adjustments or communication support to access healthcare due to deafness or hearing loss.
press releasepartially supportedUnmet communication needs in NHS settings frequently lead to severe health consequences.
studypartially supported