Some basic considerations when assessing the quality of communication are as follows:

• What methods of communication are currently being used?
• How well are they being used, both by people with and without disabilities?
• Is the communication system understood by everyone?
• Does the person without disabilities really understand the needs of the person with disabilities?
• Who does the person with disabilities usually communicate with?
• Does the person with disabilities understand what is being communicated by a person without disabilities?
• What kinds of opportunities to communicate does the person have? Does he or she have many people to talk to or is he or she left alone?
• Are there any other barriers to good communication?
• Do status, power and role influence communication? (For example, does the woman with disabilities talk in front of the man? Is the family embarrassed to let their disabled family member communicate?)
• Does the person with a disabilities require support to express his or her opinion, will or preference? If so:
  • Is this support available?
  • Is the support person communicating the best interpretation of the will of the person and not speaking on behalf of the person (in terms of the person’s best interest)?
  • Do people in the community recognize the legitimacy of decisions made with support?

Additional resource:

CBR can help reduce or remove communication barriers in the following ways:

• encouraging positive attitudes in the home environment to maximize communication opportunities for children and adults with disabilities;
• identifying key people with whom people with disabilities can communicate, and who are interested in what they have to say;
• sharing information with others about people’s preferred means of communication;it is important to develop a means by which people with disabilities can do this independently,e.g. a CBR programme could develop a “my communication sheet” for a person with a disability which tells others about the best way to communicate with him/her;
• teaching family and community members communication strategies that may be useful for people with disabilities, for example by allowing extra time for communication, using simple language, gestures, signs, drawings or Braille;
• suggesting how the environment might be adapted to maximize communication, e.g. a quiet space to talk for a person with a hearing impairment,adequate light for a person who lip-reads;
• promoting the development of a pool of trained sign language interpreters – it maybe helpful to partner with a disabled people’s organization to do this;
• using public meetings or the media to increase community awareness about the challenges faced by people with communication problems;
• together with disabled people’s organizations, promoting the need for and use of accessible information and communication formats in all activities, such as training,community events and development programmes.

Learn about the many changes that occurred once deaf people learned how to use sign language in the Philippines

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CBR
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Action

On the island of Bohol in the Philippines, the local CBR introduced basic sign language training for people with hearing impairments, their families and community members. This initiative aims to raise awareness about deaf culture and encourage people to respect and communicate with deaf people.

In 2008, over 200 community members, ranging in age from eight to 68 and from all walks of life, learned to sign, and have now gone on to teach sign language to their families and friends.

At the end of one of the training courses, the trainers (mostly deaf adults) were invited to conduct similar training programmes at the local university. The university paid them for this work.

Three of the most outstanding university students have now joined the CBR project as teachers of deaf high-school students.

CBR should assist individuals with disabilities to build self confidence and the ability to speak in public, write petitions, dialogue with others and negotiate.

To support these efforts, CBR should:

• Remember to ask people with disabilities what they want
• Provide people with information about their disability
• Provide people with information about the services that exist in their communities
• Provide information to people with disabilities about human rights and responsibilities
• Include people with disabilities in decision-making for CBR
• Link people with disabilities to self-help groups
• Make sure that public services providers understand and work to reduce or eliminate communication barriers

To support people with disabilities, CBR personnel need to be effective communicators. They must be able to interact with people from many different backgrounds and walks of life, and to communicate information clearly, using communication methods that are suitable for all people with disabilities. This is especially true:

• When topics are difficult or sensitive
• Where there are class or status differences
• Where a common language is not shared, or
• Where there are differences in literacy level

CBR personnel need to:

• Encourage a communication-friendly environment
• Support people with communication difficulties to express themselves
• Speak the same languages and dialects as the local communities

• Know the local sign language, and how to use alternate ways of communicating
• Understand and respect local cultural, class and caste differences
• Be a good role model by communicating respectfully with people with disabilities and other marginalized groups
• Communicate regularly with various stakeholders in the health, education, livelihood and social sectors
• Facilitate dialogue during stakeholder meetings
• Know how to use the media for communicating with the public