Do doctors get deaf identity?

The video is really making the point why hearing people like medical professionals want deaf and hard of hearing to be able to hear like them. The medical doctor is being audist thinking that we need to hear and need to pick out the options to be able to hear. It is really hard to explain to the hearing people that we just accept deafness or hard of hearing and nothing will change that. Getting a hearing aid or CI is not going to help them to hear better like listening. We can only hear the environment sounds, nothing more.

We have been struggling for a very long time trying to understand in the hearing world and we are not successful at that, maybe some do. That is why when we are in the Deaf community like Gallaudet University which a lot of deaf people signs comfortably and happily understand better than in the hearing world. We like ASL and think that ASL rocks.

So here again, we were being pressure to have us hear and pressure to have our deaf children to get CI. No deaf person don't like to be pressure like forcing us to do what the hearing people want. It is not fair to us all. That is what make us upset that the hearing people don't understand our deaf perspectives. :(
 
He was going too far. Of course sometimes deafness is caused by an underlying disease and some condtions are correlated with hearing loss but if you're clean and been deaf all your life without apparent cause then they should just leave that to it.
 
warpedpink said:
This woman is a friend of mine. She is such a brilliant and sweet person with a wicked sense of humor. You should watch more of her videos! They're all great. :lol:
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That's cool; I've enjoyed her stuff for a long time now....Ear of My Heart...
 
Bebonang, yes, I agree that the Dr. was going too far.

It reminds me of a customer at my work. He always wants me to wear my hearing aids, get a CI, go to the rehab center for "better audiologist". Some people just see deafness as a problem to "fix". I have been deaf so long that is just part of who I am. Some people just cant accept that.
 
Nothing new with the medical field. their minds are just way to closed to accept a crack.
 
I was at a doctor's office and I was having trouble understanding him as he had an accent. So the doctor leaned over and talked into my HA like it an ear phone!! He did this 2 times ,and I was thinking like WTF!
 
I'm not sure what people expect from doctors? If you go to a doctor regarding your deafness, doesn't that imply that you want them to fix it or do something about it? I mean, are doctors supposed to counsel you and ask you if you are sure and if you have tried the deaf community/learning ASL first?

If you go to a doctor to get a boob job, do you want the doctor to say stuff like "Are you sure? Why don't you join a community that makes you appreciate your body first?"

Now I understand if the doctor makes a recommendation uncalled for.

"Doc, the hearing aids I have is not working well anymore."
"Well those were the best HAs for you. You have lost more hearing. The only thing left is a cochlear implant."
That is okay.

"Doc, I need some new earmolds."
"Well, instead of spending so much on new earmolds every 6 months, why don't you just get a cochlear implant?"
Uncalled for.
 
Daredevel7 said:
I'm not sure what people expect from doctors? If you go to a doctor regarding your deafness, doesn't that imply that you want them to fix it or do something about it? I mean, are doctors supposed to counsel you and ask you if you are sure and if you have tried the deaf community/learning ASL first?

If you go to a doctor to get a boob job, do you want the doctor to say stuff like "Are you sure? Why don't you join a community that makes you appreciate your body first?"

Now I understand if the doctor makes a recommendation uncalled for.

"Doc, the hearing aids I have is not working well anymore."
"Well those were the best HAs for you. You have lost more hearing. The only thing left is a cochlear implant."
That is okay.

"Doc, I need some new earmolds."
"Well, instead of spending so much on new earmolds every 6 months, why don't you just get a cochlear implant?"
Uncalled for.
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this lady in the video went for a physical checkup. She was turned off by the doctor constantly focusing on her ears instead of her whole body. She said she told the doctor that she didnt come for an audiogram and doesnt need to know why she is deaf. That's the whole point.
 
shel90 said:
this lady in the video went for a physical checkup. She was turned off by the doctor constantly focusing on her ears instead of her whole body. She said she told the doctor that she didnt come for an audiogram and doesnt need to know why she is deaf. That's the whole point.
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I may have misunderstood her story, but it came across to me as though the doctor was just interested in her deafness, and what caused her late deafness may have medical implications unrelated to whether or not she cares about hearing or is culturally deaf. I thought LaRonda said specifically that she asked about an audi referral before her doctor mentioned it, and having done so, her doctor then suggested she get her head/neck checked by a specialist. Seems to me LaRonda didn't have to follow up on that, but it was the responsible thing for a doc to suggest.

Frankly, I wish there were more focus on different parts of my body in most of my annual exams -- it seems that for women it's often just your standard GYN-focused examination with limited 'are your periods regular' type questions. I once had an exam where I would have put money on the doctor not recognizing my face 5 minutes after I put my clothes on because I don't think he once looked above the sheet or away from his clipboard.
 
GrendelQ said:
I may have misunderstood her story, but it came across to me as though the doctor was just interested in her deafness, and what caused her late deafness may have medical implications unrelated to whether or not she cares about hearing or is culturally deaf. I thought LaRonda said specifically that she asked about an audi referral before her doctor mentioned it, and having done so, her doctor then suggested she get her head/neck checked by a specialist. Seems to me LaRonda didn't have to follow up on that, but it was the responsible thing for a doc to suggest.

Frankly, I wish there were more focus on different parts of my body in most of my annual exams -- it seems that for women it's often just your standard GYN-focused examination with limited 'are your periods regular' type questions. I once had an exam where I would have put money on the doctor not recognizing my face 5 minutes after I put my clothes on because I don't think he once looked above the sheet or away from his clipboard.
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thankfully i dont have doctors like that.

Last weekend I was in the ER and had a moron for a doctor. I made sure he understood my opinion of him and had him replaced.
 
shel90 said:
this lady in the video went for a physical checkup. She was turned off by the doctor constantly focusing on her ears instead of her whole body. She said she told the doctor that she didnt come for an audiogram and doesnt need to know why she is deaf. That's the whole point.
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I think the doctor in this specific case went too far (seems more than curiosity, curiosity is okay), but I was referring to the comments seen in this thread and other threads. Seems like there's a lot of animosity towards doctors (or people in the medical field) in general, because they try to "fix" them.
 
posts from hell said:
thankfully i dont have doctors like that.

Last weekend I was in the ER and had a moron for a doctor. I made sure he understood my opinion of him and had him replaced.
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I hope you are ok, PFH!

Unfortunately, the old snapping fingers in the face and 'eyes up here, buddy' line that works wonders in a bar isn't all that effective on the exam table.
 
GrendelQ said:
I hope you are ok, PFH!

Unfortunately, the old snapping fingers in the face and 'eyes up here, buddy' line that works wonders in a bar isn't all that effective on the exam table.
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I ripped an abs muscle on the left side, and the doctor was trying to poke me hard showing me where my appendix was. That coupled with a bunch of his other statements showed he didn't care for the deaf, and looked down on me because of my deafness. He was constantly "waving things off" so he wouldnt have to write it. He was writing two-three word sentences and i had my laptop so I could communicate - i was asking him to clarify and expand on his sentences that did not make sense to me. He got frustrated... I took the time to "show him VRS" while i was calling the triage desk in the hospital to the main doctor that was overseeing me... The doctor said "hold on" and immediately came in and had him leave. :cool2:

It was sooo stupid.
 
This kind of doctors allways fascinates me, and I've sometimes found them to be entertaining in a hillarous way. Of course, I never go back to them, I simply don't dare let nutcases play with my health.
 
Unfortunately, the majority of doctors, audis, SLP's, and hearing aid dispensers do not get "deaf identity" at all. It is the direct result of the type of training they receive during their education. I find it very, very frustrating, to say the least. They need to receive much more multicultural training and also studies regarding the impact of disability on the individual's idea of self. It is so sadly lacking that often they create more problems for the individual that they help to solve. I find this to be true regarding many different disabilitities. The medical profession, as a whole, is focused too much on what is not there than what is there. They fail to approach any disability from a strengths based model.
 
I got a new audi and he wears a hearing aid! :applause: A guy at an ASL social referred me to him. He took good care of me and I'll definitely be going back to him. :D

Doctors are trained to look at a body and "fix" it. Most doctors don't have good bedside manners. When I need a surgeon, I pick the best one despite of limited social skills. :P
 
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