Written by Gabriel Dionio and Marianne Pagaduan
Being able to treat patients regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, or conditions, and the Deaf should be no exception. And while The implementation of Republic Act No. 11106, or the Filipino Sign Language (FSL) Act, aims to improve accessibility for the Deaf community in various institutions, including hospitals. However, despite the law’s existence, it is still not a familiar policy even amongst medical professionals, which speaks to the healthcare’s awareness of the law itself. This article explores the experiences and perspectives of medical interns and practitioners regarding the FSL Law, highlighting challenges in training, government support, and communication with Deaf patients.
One of the most significant findings from our affiliate study is the lack of proper basic FSL training or resources for medical interns. Interns are the first stage when progressing in the medical field, so if they aren’t given the proper means for FSL training, then the same can be said for most other medical practitioners. Most interns from our study have reported that their medical education does not include lessons or seminars on basic Filipino Sign Language, with no prior experience in FSL learning or training that isn’t out of self-interest. This leaves most to be unprepared to communicate properly and effectively with Deaf patients and this gap in training forces them to rely on written communication or seek assistance from family members, which only works as a band-aid solution and may not be effective in all cases.
Furthermore, medical interns expressed that government support for training programs on Deaf accessibility is insufficient. Plenty of the medical interns in the affiliate study believe that government support was lacking and should be rightfully given a second glance. We believe this is a systemic problem, as the lack of government support further influences the lack of awareness of this law especially towards the medical field, as even medical professionals still find themselves unaware of the existence of the FSL Law. Without mandated FSL training in medical curriculums or accessible resources, future healthcare professionals may struggle to properly communicate and cater to the needs of Deaf patients. The medical interns in the study emphasized the need for seminars or structured workshops that introduce them to basic FSL to ensure better patient interactions, but these are still developing.
Medical practitioners, as stated previously, have demonstrated a lack of awareness about the FSL Law. Many admitted that they were unfamiliar with Republic Act No. 11106 and its provisions for the Deaf community. For the few who have heard of the FSL Law, it only exists at a surface level as they have admitted they are not familiar with the provisions contained within the implemented rules and regulations of the law. This lack of knowledge may further hinder the development of Deaf-centric healthcare, as if awareness is low, then actions will be taken towards the improvement of providing the same quality of healthcare towards those with specific needs.
This was touched upon by one of the respondents of the study, due to the act being targeted towards a rather niche minority of the population, it does not get much advocacy nor attention from the Department of Health (DOH). The Deaf, despite being a strong and tight-knit community, deafness is a part of a rather small part of the population, and hospitals would like to address concerns they find more pressing, with one medical professional stating:
“They have more problems. I think they have big- I’m not saying that it’s not a problem, but they have big problems in the hospital that they are prioritizing at the moment. I don’t even know if it’s one of the things that they are concerned about.”
They argued that with limited time and resources, hospitals prioritize more common medical concerns, unintentionally sidelining the needs of the Deaf community, and while the mindset is valid, this only further touches on the issue that the Deaf, at least in the medical context, are treated like an afterthought.
This article is based on the research study, “A Phenomenological Study on the Use of Filipino Sign Language (FSL) pursuant to Republic Act No. 11106 in Medical Institutions in Metro Manila,” where researchers interviewed six medical interns and two medical practitioners on their awareness of the FSL Law.
