Guide To Etiquette And Behavior For Working With Persons With Disabilities

The following summary contains many true statements, but no absolute truths. Every person with a disability is different. While this summary is about disabilities, you are working with individuals who have disabilities. So, all of the following guidelines are valid until someone with a disability tells you that they want it done in some other way. With this in mind, the following general guidelines are offered:

Disability - Blind and/or Visually Impaired

Things to Know:
 

• The definition of legally blind is 20/200 vision with best correction. Many more persons who are considered blind have some sight, rather than no sight at all.

• Many persons who are blind are quite mobile and independent. Some people who are blind, view blindness not as a disability as much as an inconvenience.

• While many persons who are blind can use braille, the majority of persons who are blind do not.

Things to Do:
 

• Introduce yourself. Identify who you are and what your job or role is. Give the person verbal information that is visually obvious to those who can see.

• Be descriptive when giving directions. Saying, ìOver there,î has little meaning to someone who cannot see you point. ìFour doors after turning right from the elevator,î would be much more helpful.

• Lead someone who is blind only after they have accepted your offer to do so. Allow them to hold your arm rather than you holding them. It is important to let them control their own movements.

• Describe things from their perspective, not yours. Some persons who are blind use a ìclockî reference for things directly in front of them such as a meal. For example, something could be positioned at thee oíclock (to their right) or six oíclock (directly in front and close). Before using this strategy, ask the person if this is useful to them.

• Tell them when you have brought new items into their environment, describing what they are and, most importantly, where you have put them.

Things to Avoid:
 

• Do not move items (furniture, personal items) after their position has been learned by the person. This can be frustrating and, in some cases, dangerous for the person.

• Do not use references that are visually oriented like, ìOver there near the green plant.î

• Do not interact with a dog guide while it is working (in harness).

Things to Consider:
 

• Persons who are blind and/or visually impaired are by and large much more independent than people give them credit for. Many times negotiating the physical environment is less frustrating than trying to communicate with persons who are not sensitive to their needs.
• Persons who are blind have a long history of being patronized and talked to as if they were children. They have more often been told what to do rather than asked what they would prefer doing. This attitude is not acceptable towards any person.

Disability - Deaf and/or Hearing Impaired

Things to Know:

•  Deaf and hearing-impaired persons are entering the workplace in record numbers.

• More persons who are deaf or hearing-impaired have some hearing rather than no hearing at all.

• Sign language is not another form of English; it is an official language with its own grammar, contexts and rules.

• Lip reading, while helpful without sound clues, is only 30%-50% effective, and sometimes less.

• Long conversations with persons who lip-read can be very fatiguing to the person who has the impairment.

• Not all persons who are deaf use sign language.

• Not all persons who are deaf write and read.

• Not all persons who are deaf speak.

• Not all persons who are deaf lip-read.

Things to Do:

Find out how the person best communicates.

If the person uses an interpreter, address the person, not the interpreter.

If the person reads lips, speak in a normal, not exaggerated way. Short, simple sentences are best.

If the person lip-reads, avoid blocking their view of your face. Make sure the lighting is good.

Gain their attention before starting a conversation.

 If there is some doubt in your mind whether they understood you correctly, rephrase your statement and ask them if you have been understood.

Be aware of situations where a person may be waiting for a service (transportation, a table, the start of an activity) where the common way to communicate is an announcement or the calling of the personís name. Make sure you take notes when someone cannot hear you and develop an alternative way of notifying them.

Things to Avoid:
 

• Do not become impatient or exasperated with the person if it takes longer to communicate.

• Make sure there are no physical barriers between you and the person while in conversation.

• If the person is using hearing aids, avoid conversations in large, open and noisy surroundings.

Things to Consider:
 

• Persons who may deal very well one-on-one in communication may have a hard time with two or more speakers, especially if there are many interruptions and interjections.

• Showing impatience to someone who is deaf or hearing impaired may cause the less assertive to back off from telling you of their needs.

• When someone asks, "What did you say?" the answers, "Never mind," "Nothing," or "It's not important," are very common replies. These are insulting and demeaning, because they communicate that the person is not worth repeating yourself for.

Disability - Uses Wheelchair

Things to Know:
 

• There are many reasons (not just being paralyzed) for someone to use a wheelchair.

• There is a wide range of physical abilities among those who use wheelchairs. This means that the persons who use them may require different degrees of assistance.

• Some persons do not use wheelchairs exclusively, but may also use canes, leg braces, and in some cases, no assistive devices at all for short periods.

• All wheelchairs are not the same. Different sizes and shapes meet different needs. Just because one employee could access an area in his or her chair, does not mean that everyone will be able to do so.

Things to Do:
 

• If you are asked to fold, carry or store a wheelchair, treat it with the same kind of respect that you would if you were holding someoneís eyeglasses. They are similar in many ways. They can break, they are difficult to have repaired on short notice and weekends, and it is extremely disruptive to the user when they are out of commission.

• When speaking to someone who uses a wheelchair, remember to give the person a comfortable viewing angle of yourself. Having to look straight up is not a comfortable viewing angle.

Things to Avoid:
 

• Do not come up to someone who is using a wheelchair and start pushing them without asking.

• When communicating, do not stand too close to the person in the wheelchair. Give them some space.

Things to Consider:
 

• It is a very common experience for persons who use wheelchairs to be told that some place is accessible when it is not. Listen carefully when anyone who uses a wheelchair tells you that some area that you thought was accessible is not.

• Do not assume that the person using a wheelchair needs assistance. Ask the person if there is anything special you can provide.

Disability - Conditions Which Cause Difficulty with Speech

Things to Know:
 

• There are many reasons for having difficulty with speech. Deafness, cerebral palsy, stroke, head injury, physical malformation of speech mechanisms, and general speech impairment are just a few.

• It is not unusual in stressful situations for someoneís speech to become harder to understand.

Things to Do:
 

• If you do not understand what the person is saying, bring it to their attention immediately and ask them how the two of you may better communicate.

• If it is a stressful situation, try to stay calm. If you are in a public area with many distractions, consider moving to a quiet or private location.

• Consider writing as an alternative means of communication.

• If no solution to the communication problem can be worked out with you and the person, consider asking if there is someone who could translate or interpret what they are saying.

Things to Avoid:
 

• Do not pretend to understand them when you really do not.

• Do not become impatient or exasperated with the communication.

• Do not finish peopleís sentences for them.

Things to Consider:
 

• Many persons with difficulty in speech find themselves in situations where people treat them as if they are drunk, retarded or mentally ill. They are accustomed to being avoided, ignored, and even hung up on by phone.

• Accessibility for persons with difficulty in speech lies within your power. Your understanding, patience and communication skills are as important to someone with speech that is difficult to understand as a ramp or a grab bar is to someone who uses a wheelchair.