Kerry Deaf Resource Centre Update 12.05.14

NINE  YEAR  OLD  BOY  TRYING  TO  GET  IRELAND  SIGNING
Quaid is a young Irish boy aged 9 who is hearing and believes its time for a
change for deaf children. Quaid says “ Not everyone can hear what you say,
so Sign it. On his website, he says “Have you ever been to a foreign country
and tried to ask for something simple like milk or toothpaste? Well imagine
feeling that awkward in your own country because you are deaf and no one
speaks your language.

Quaid is also trying to get RTÉ to use Irish Sign Language (ISL) on this
year’s Late Late Toy Show so deaf children can be included and have as much
fun as he always does.  He is frustrated that although deaf children attend
mainstream schools, ISL is not taught to hearing students so all the
children can communicate with each other.  To see what this impressive young
lad is up to in his quest to ‘Get Ireland Signing’ go to his Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/GetIrelandSigning

‘PROJECT  RITA’  YOUNG  SOCIAL  INNOVATORS  PROJECT WINNERS
In one of our February newsletters, we talked about students in Cork who
have been teaching Irish Sign Language (ISL) to teachers and fellow students
and organising a petition to campaign for ISL to be recognised in Ireland.
The Young Social Innovators (YSI) award ceremony was held on Wednesday 7th
May and they won the category called ‘Making our country more inclusive and
poverty free’ with their Deaf Awareness project.  As part of their
involvement in YSI, they secured funding for ‘Project Rita’, which was named
after one of the boy’s Deaf parents, and this enabled them to do more work.
The Journal.ie has now written an article on the students and on YSI- to
read it, go to:
http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/young-social-innovators-project-rita-1446115
-May2014/?utm_source=shortlink

HOSPITAL CRITISED AFTER  DEAF  MAN  HAD  TO  WALK  HOME
A number of years ago we ran an article where a jury recommended that major
changes be made in the way hospitals treat patients with disabilities after
hearing how a 60-year-old Deaf man died as he tried to walk 50 miles home.
Sadly the recommended changes do not seem to have been implemented, as you
will see from the following newspaper article

“A woman whose elderly sick brother had to walk home from Wexford General
Hospital in the middle of the night said she is ‘disgusted’ at how he was
treated.  The Wexford man, who lives in Maudlintown, had been vomiting for
weeks and his GP arranged for him to go into hospital.

An ambulance took him to the A&E department where he underwent examination
and tests.  Several hours later, at 2.30 am, hospital staff advised Patrick
that he could return home, according to Nancy.  ‘He was told he would have
to make his own way home.  He went to the reception and asked them to ring a
taxi but they pointed him to the public phone in the foyer,’ she said.  ‘My
brother is Deaf and he can’t use the phone,’ said Nancy.

Patrick left the hospital and walked to Nancy’s house in Brendan Corish
Gardens.  She was shocked to see him standing at her door in the middle of
the night as she had left her telephone number with A&E staff in case she
needed to be contacted.

‘They should have either brought him home in an ambulance or telephoned me,’
she said.  ‘They gave him a sleeping tablet when he was there.  He is Deaf.
He could have staggered out onto the road or anything,’ said Nancy.  ‘They
gave him a sleeping tablet and sent him home walking.  ‘When he asked them
to ring a taxi, they said you’ll have to find your own way.’

Nancy said her brother has been vomiting for five weeks and is still ill.
She decided to highlight the incident after reading recent local newspaper
reports about the crisis in the ambulance service.  ‘I read about those men
dying while waiting for an ambulance to arrive,’ she said.  ‘My brother
could have been one of those men.’ To see the article go to:
http://www.independent.ie/regionals/wexfordpeople/news/deaf-elderly-man-had-
to-walk-home-from-hospital-30165612.html

DEAF  TRIP  TO  LOURDES  2014
The National Chaplaincy has planed a trip to Lourdes for Deaf People (NCDP)
in conjunction with The Dublin Diocesan Pilgrimage, from 7th to 12th
September 2014.

Those travelling will be staying at the Hotel Solitude for five nights
all-inclusive at a cost of 707 euro.  Bookings can be made by contacting Fr
Gerald Tyrrell on 087 2860704 or Annie Egan, in Admin, on 086 3209794.
Deposits of 300 euro will have to be paid by end of May. Full payment will
be needed by end of June 2014.  Please ensure your passport is up-to-date.
For those who would like to have their own room, there is an extra charge of
150 euro for the week, bringing the total cost to 857 euro.

OUR CONTACT DETAILS:
Kerry Deaf Resource Centre.
4 Gas Tce, Tralee, Co. Kerry, IRELAND

Charity Number CHY20854

Text     (+353) 87 633 4687
Fax      (+353) 66 712 0386
Tel       (+353) 66 712 0399

E-mail       [email protected]
Website    www.kerrydeaf.com
Facebook  www.facebook.com/kerrydeaf

KDRC provides services to Deaf and hard of hearing people at county level
and contributes to national issues of equality, access and rights.