NHS ' wastes £ 20m on deaf '

From: The Scotsman - Edinburgh,Scotland,UK - Mar 3, 2004

DEAF and hard of hearing patients are being failed by the NHS, which wastes £20 million a year due to its lack of awareness of their needs, according to a report out today.

The RNID, which represents the UK's nine million deaf and hard of hearing people, conducted a survey of almost 900 people to gauge their experiences of the health service.

They said the results painted "a stark picture of the poor access to health care experienced by the one in seven people who have a hearing loss".

©2004 Scotsman.com