We have updated Summer Camp resources for children with disabilities. Camp listings are for day and residential camps. Camps are located in Massachusetts, New England, and beyond. Check our listings for specific camp information and openings. Cost varies by type of camp and programs offered.
Camps offer a big range of programs and activities. Camps may have available openings and wait lists. Each camp has its own eligibility requirements. If you have questions, please contact each camp for details.
The EasyCOVID-19 project is now recruiting people to help us simplify COVID19 terms. Please help us by visiting our EasyCOVID-19 crowdsourcing app. This is the start of our project to simplify the COVID-19 information published by every country’s government websites.
Overall Plan
We will start with the Massachusetts. We will then expand to the other U.S. states. We will then move to the 18 English Speaking countries, then the 21 Spanish speaking countries, then the world! This will help many huge populations, such as people with cognitive disabilities, non-native language speakers, the Deaf, and seniors. When they understand how to be safe and healthy, the whole world will be safe and healthy.
These communication boards are helpful for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to talk with doctors, nurses and other medical providers.
Boards and tools include Pediatric Pain Scale, Letter Boards, Medical Decision Making, Adult General Needs, Pediatric General Needs and Creating Your Own Boards.
Bilingual Communication Tools are available in Arabic/English, Bulgarian/English, Chinese Simplified/English, Chinese Traditional English, French/English, German/English, Hebrew/English, German/English, Italian/English, Portuguese/English, Spanish/English. These Communication tools verified by a certified medical interpreter are now available.
I have learned a lot from all of my children – about who I am, what matters, how right my own mother was! What it means to listen, to really listen, as a mom and as a therapist, was shown to me through my journey with my youngest child. In today’s blog, I’d like to start at the beginning of that journey.
When I was pregnant with my third daughter, I thought I knew all that I needed to know to take good care of her and enjoy doing it. I had two children who were healthy and happy and well-adjusted and I hadn’t broken them or steered them wrong. I was going to relax with this new baby. I was going to revel in her small-ness and snuggle her all day and not worry as much about schedules and routines and all the concerns of new moms. I knew how to do this. I really had given it that much thought! So when just days after my sweet girl was born I learned that she was deaf, I was more than a little thrown. I did not know how to do this.
*More than 95% of deaf and hard of hearing babies are born to hearing parents.*
For five days I thought everything was fine. I fed her and held her and shared her with her sisters. I was a tired but happy and confident mom. Minutes after learning she was deaf, I questioned everything. How could it be that she hadn’t heard me sing to her, talk to her, let her know I was there? Was she scared? Was she ok? How would I tell her stories and talk to her about boys? I had so much to learn and it did not feel like I would ever have the energy it would take to figure it all out.
*My daughter was the first deaf person I ever knew.*
I remember those days early in her life. I felt lost when I thought too much, but she was happy and healthy and she responded to me. She liked to be close. She liked to eat! She liked to sway and dance. I remember feeling silly singing to her because she couldn’t hear me. I touched my lips to her forehead as I sang and hummed anyway. I touched my face to her cheek when I told her I loved her. She couldn’t hear me, but I could listen to her, for her. I could pay attention in a new way.
If you are the parent of a new baby who is deaf or hard of hearing and want information on resources for you or your child, connect with the MA Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Program.
I am a doctor, and I am deaf. A deaf person is someone who cannot hear most things. For example, I cannot hear your voice on my cell phone, but we can still talk on the phone!
If you need to talk to a deaf or hard of hearing person on the phone, it is important to ask him or her what is the best way. We may have a special phone number for you to call.
Some people use a special phone like a TTY/TDD or a Captel phone. You can call on any regular phone, and a person in the middle will type what you say on their special phone, so the deaf person can read it.
If the deaf person knows sign language, it is popular to use a video relay service. During a video relay call, you will talk to a sign language interpreter on your phone. The interpreter shows up on a video camera to the deaf person, and will sign what you said. I can use this app on my cell phone!
Through this phone technology, deaf people can call the doctor and talk to family. They can also call 9-1-1 in an emergency. If you are deaf or hard of hearing, you can use these services for free.
I am a doctor, and I am deaf. A deaf person is someone who cannot hear most things. For example, I cannot hear a fire or smoke alarm. Fire safety is important. I use a special fire alarm. There are different kinds.
Strobe light
This alarm makes a loud noise and flashes a very bright light quickly. It replaces your standard fire alarm
Shaking alarm
This alarm makes a loud noise. It also has a piece you can put under your bed or inside another piece of furniture. If the alarm goes off, it will shake the furniture. It connects to your standard fire alarm.
Low frequency fire alarm
This alarm sends out a sound that is deep. It helps people who cannot hear high pitched sounds, but can hear other sounds. It connects to your standard fire alarm.
Most companies can help you find someone to set up the equipment so it is working right. The equipment may even be free. It is important to test your fire alarm once a month and change the batteries regularly.
For more information on fire safety and where to buy fire alarms:
This month we have been focusing on the services and resources available for people living with hearing loss. As the Information and Referral Specialist at the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (MCDHH), I respond to inquiries from individuals and organizations on a broad range of topics.
There is never a dull moment in my job! A day doesn’t go by that I don’t learn something new about the technology, services, or needs of the people living with hearing loss in Massachusetts.
Common Topics Of Discussion
Some of the most common topics I discuss with people include American Sign Language (ASL) classes, Deaf Culture, becoming an interpreter, working with interpreters, and who is responsible for paying for interpreters.
Assistive Technology (AT) is also a common topic including related funding, and vendors for AT use in the home, the classroom, and the office.
Direct services available for deaf and hard of hearing people of all ages are a resource shared with many, as well as hearing aid technology, funding, coverage, and how to choose the best hearing aid. I also get a lot of questions about the Americans with Disabilities Act and its application.
Why I Love My Job
In my position I discuss the physics of sound and the physiology of hearing with individuals and organizations making inquiries. The range of technology includes everything from pen and paper to Smartphone apps; the simplest assistive technology in use for decades to the newest technology still in a development phase.
The best part of it all is I have the privilege of seeing the power of information change people’s lives.
Resources
The following ASL videos highlight services offered by the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
My name is Jonathan O’Dell, and I’m the Assistive Technology and Training Specialist at the Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.
When Hearing Aids Were No Longer Enough
I became ill with meningitis at age 10 and I lost my hearing quickly. I remember wondering why I couldn’t understand the radio or television anymore, but it wasn’t until a few months later that my father thought to have my hearing tested and we found out I would be needing hearing aids.
I used a body aid at first, a big box with a wire snaking to my earpiece; then I wore smaller behind-the-ear types for many years. Unfortunately my hearing kept getting worse, and soon even the most powerful aids didn’t help me anymore. That’s when I decided to see if a Cochlear Implant (CI) would help me.
What Is A Cochlear Implant?
CI‘s are designed to help people with severe nerve damage – “sensorineural hearing loss” is the medical term – by taking over the functions of the damaged cochlea. That’s the part of the ear where speech and sounds are received as vibrations and sent to the brain as electrical signals.
When the cochlea is damaged the brain doesn’t get the full signal anymore, which means that while you may hear something you might not understand what it is, or what someone is saying to you, even though you can hear them speaking.
A CI requires surgery and is done under full anesthesia, so I asked a lot of questions about safety and effectiveness from my surgeon and his team. They told me it was a safe procedure, problems were fairly rare, and that while they couldn’t guarantee my hearing would be better, they were pretty sure it would help me quite a bit. So I decided to go for it, and my left ear was implanted in the winter of 2011.
Internal Component of Chochlear Implant
After The Surgery
It took me less than two weeks to recover from the surgery, and just a few weeks more to get used to the initially very strange way that everything sounded. After I had gotten used to it, I was tested to see how much it helped. I had improved from 0% speech discrimination (understanding words without speechreading) to almost 60%.
I did so well that I decided to get my right ear implanted also, which was done in February of 2012. The surgery was more complex this time, and the recovery period longer, but the results were equally impressive.
Is A CI Right For You?
If you notice that even a really strong hearing aid isn’t helping you anymore, maybe it’s time to look into getting a CI for yourself. You’ll have to undergo several tests and doctor’s visits to see if you are a candidate. The process takes a long time, but it was absolutely worth it for me and many other late deafened adults I’ve talked to who also went for it.
External Component of Chochlear Implant
I’m much more confident now in approaching anyone, anywhere to have a conversation. My hearing aids just amplified sounds and didn’t make them any easier to understand, but making sounds easier to understand is what CI‘s are designed to do. The implants are only getting better; they keep getting smaller, and at least one manufacturer has come up with a waterproof CI for people who want to hear while on or in the water.
The Massachusetts Commission for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is the principal agency in the Commonwealth for enabling Deaf, late-deafened, DeafBlind and hard of hearing people full participation in all areas of life. This is accomplished through efforts to facilitate effective public policy, provision of technical assistance, offering specialized services, advocacy, and public education.
This month we are pleased to introduce Debra Lobsitz, Information and Referral Specialist from the Commission to share her expertise and personal experience at the Commission.
Addressing Questions
As the Information and Referral Specialist, I try to provide people with up to date information on topics of interest to the people we serve. Most recently, The Children’s Hearing Aid Bill – Chapter 233 of the Acts of 2012 (HB 52) was implemented. As of January 1, 2013, on the date of renewal for your medical insurance, hearing aids for children must be covered by your medical insurance. There have been several questions about the details and I want to address some that are most frequently asked.
Who is covered?
Children 21 years old or younger with fully insured medical plans. Self-funded/self-insured plans are not required to conform to this legislation. Here is a list of self-insured employers in Massachusetts.
What is covered?
Expenses up to $2,000 for one hearing aid per ear requiring a device are covered every 36 months. In addition to that, the initial evaluation, fittings, adjustments, and supplies are also covered. Batteries are considered supplies.
Where can I find more information?
The Massachusetts Hearing Aids for Children Coalition or MassHAFCC , a grassroots statewide network that focused on the passage of the Bill provides a blog. This blog offers guidance on what steps to take if coverage is denied.
Topics for the upcoming weeks will include improvements in our educational system for Deaf and hard of hearing students, a personal account of receiving a cochlear implant, and technological solutions for communication access.
