"Family handout Hospital staff asked a teenage boy to tell his deaf mother that her father might die, according to the findings of an ombudsman. The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman said University Hospitals Birmingham (UHB) NHS Trust failed to follow national guidance, by repeatedly using children to interpret critical medical information for their deaf family members. Alan Graham, who was born deaf and used British Sign Language (BSL) as his first language, died in September 2021 after being treated at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital."
"During an 11-week period in hospital, professional BSL interpreters were provided on only three occasions, the ombudsman found. Instead staff regularly relied on Petty's son and daughter, who was 12, to translate complex medical information, including details about the 75-year-old's condition. The 52-year-old said the situation was deeply upsetting for the whole family and it was "totally unacceptable" that her children were placed in the position of delivering bad news about their grandfather's condition."
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Trust repeatedly used the children of a deaf patient to interpret complex medical information instead of providing professional British Sign Language interpreters. Alan Graham, who used BSL as his first language, died in September 2021 after treatment at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital. Professional BSL interpreters were provided on only three occasions during an 11-week admission. Clinicians asked a 16-year-old to explain that his grandfather might not survive the night and that CPR should not be attempted; the 75-year-old died the next day. The practice caused significant distress, affected the family's ability to grieve, and prompted an apology from the trust.
Read at www.bbc.com
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