Dorothy Walt, Helen Keller National Center

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SSP DEAF - BLIND SUCCESS!

• Presented by
• Dorothy Walt, Helen Keller National Center
• Molly Rimer, Helen Keller National Center
• Jamie Pope, American Association for the
  Deaf-Blind

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Workshop topics

• Brief introduction to deaf-blindness
• Role of an SSP in the life of a deaf-blind person
• Positive impacts that an SSP can have on the
  employment of a deaf-blind person
• Resources

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Definition of deaf-blindness as written in
the helen keller act

• Vision
• Central vision loss of 20/200 or less in the
  better eye with corrective lenses
• Peripheral vision of no greater than 20 degrees
• Progressive vision loss
• Hearing
• Chronic hearing loss so severe that most speech
  cant be understood without amplification
• Progressive hearing loss

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Definition of deaf-blindness helen keller act
(contd)

• Combination causes extreme difficulty in
• Attaining independence in daily life activities
• Achieving psychosocial adjustment
• Obtaining a vocation
• Functional and performance assessments
• Used for those with cognitive and behavioral
  constraints

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American association for the deaf-blind

• Definition of Deaf-Blind
• Combination of hearing and vision loss of any
• varying degrees that affects a persons
• ability to
• Communicate
• Get environmental information
• Participate in the community
• Obtain and keep a job
• Maintain independence

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Diversity of Deaf-blind people

• From the Deaf community
• ASL, Usher 1, Deaf culture
• From the Blind community
• Spoken language, multiple etiologies, Braille
  readers, mobility skills
• With low vision and are hard-of-hearing
• Spoken language, Usher 2, and multiple
  etiologies, many seniors
• With multiple challenges
• Alternative communication systems, usually born
  deaf-blind, may live in a group home

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How does vision and hearing loss affect a person?

• Communication
• Independence (traveling, living alone)
• Psychosocial adjustment (esp. related to
  identity)
• Technology
• EMPLOYMENT!

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Support Service Providers

• Are the eyes and ears for deaf-blind people,
  allowing them equal access to the community where
  they live and work.

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ssps assist with visual information

• Whats happening around them
• How the room is set up, who is there, what they
  are doing, their mood
• Reading a menu
• Product information when shopping size, color,
  shape, price, and options available

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ssps assist by providing human guide

• To and from a meeting place
• To and from the restroom
• Through a lunch line
• To and from special events
• At recreational activities
• To and from work

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sspS assist with communication

• Connect with people
• Basic, informal interpreting i.e. social
  interactions
• Make phone calls, read and respond to mail and
  emails

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ssps assist with Transportation

• Rides to job interviews, conferences, workshops,
  errands, recreation,
• doctors appointments,
• shopping
• Important in rural areas where public
  transportation is limited
• Communicate with bus drivers, ticket agent
• Navigate subway system, catch the right bus

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SSPs assist with everyday life

• Food/clothes shopping
• Basic banking
• Watching sporting event
• Participating in extra-
• curricular activities
• Connect with families
• Vacations
• Church, temple, synagogue, etc
• Access to systems (rehab.,
• medical, education, and social security)

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It is not appropriate for ssps to

• Be a personal care attendant
• Run errands without the deaf-blind person
• Teaching
• Formal interpreting (unless already a certified
  interpreter)
• Ask personal questions
• Make decisions for the deaf-blindperson
• Give opinion if not asked

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Ssps assist with pre-Employment

• Transportation and human guide to various
  appointments
• VR counselor
• Medical evaluations
• Vocational assessments
• Classes/training on vocational and job search
  skills
• Read letter and print materials, fill out forms
  associated with these appointments

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Ssps assist with job search activities

• Read job announcements on the web and newspaper
• Visual information on resumes, applications,
  cover letters, and thank you letters
• Interview preparation clothes shopping, dry
  cleaners, haircut, nice paper for resume
• Informational and job interviews

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Ssps assist with maintaining jobs

• Connect with co-workers
• Read memos, files, reports
• Provide transportation tomeetings and other
  locations
• Human guide to meetings
• Assist through a lunch line (or assist with food
  shopping to bring lunch to work)

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Meet Bapin

• SSPs give deaf-blind individuals an empowered
  feeling
• SSPs assist with transportation (hotels, training
  facilities, etc.), networking, and accessing
  communities
• SSPs provide technological assistance
• Without an SSP, it would be difficult to
  investigate and research new technologies

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Meet Ashley

• Mental health and substance abuse therapist with
  Usher Syndrome Type I
• Interpreters used for meetings, training
• SSPs provide transportation for my community and
  outreach work
• Rely on coworkers, interpreters or SSPs to
  provide communication assistance with clients

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Additional success stories

• Entrepreneur, Usher
• SSP for communicating with clients,
  transportation and assistance with telephone
  conversations
• Teacher, Braille, computer, ILS and tactile sign
• SSP for training support and transportation
• Teacher, Language, Usher
• SSP for monitoring student behavior
• ASL instructor, Usher 1
• SSP to provide visual/environmental information
  regarding student communication and relaying
  visual communication tactually

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Recent efforts
AADB HKNC

• Nationwide SSP program
• Formal training at AADB symposium
• SSP Task Force with HKNC

• New Jersey
• California
• Collaboration with Seattles DBSC
• SSP Task Force with AADB

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Resources

• American Association for the Deaf-Blind
• Email AADB-info_at_aadb.org
• Website www.aadb.org
• Helen Keller National Center - Regional Office
• Email hkncinfo_at_hknc.org
• Website www.hknc.org
• National SSP Pilot Project Deaf-Blind Service
  Center
• Email info_at_seattledbsc.org
• Website www.seattledbsc.org
• SSP Curriculum http//www.seattledbsc.org/SSPCurr
  iculum.html

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While they were saying among themselves it
cannot be done, it was done.- Helen Keller