AFI would like to acknowledge the hard work and advocacy of the deaf community and their leadership and expertise in this space, including the petitioners to the Assembly who called for the Inquiry.
AFI endorses the recommendations made by Deaf Connect in their DRC submission, especially their recommendations regarding early intervention, health and mental health, workforce shortages, transport, emergency planning and response, justice and ageing deaf communities and access to services.
Recommendations:
- Government workplans should aim to increase Auslan translation of a range of ACT government announcements, not just emergencies
- ACT Health should ensure no one is unable to communicate in health settings and develop workarounds that acknowledge current workforce supply issues – these include providing the equipment necessary for and implementing remote video interpreting (VRI) in health care settings and allowing out-of-state interpreters
- All resources need to have Auslan translations, not just easy English or closed captions, especially health resources, covid guidelines, emergency planning instructions
- There should be mandated deaf awareness training for first responders, healthcare workers, justice system staff, and DV and sexual assault services.