Video transcript: Hello, YouTube here. I'm here to explain another story at the hospital, which is really interesting. I arrived for an MRI scan, and luckily, there was a lovely interpreter with me. However, we had to wait for a long time, and it was quite crowded. The interpreter kept checking her watch, and I asked her what was wrong.
She told me she had only been here for 30 minutes. I was surprised (see my eyes moving right side). I told her that normally in the UK, interpreters are present for interviews, conferences, one-to-one meetings, for two or three hours. She acknowledged this but explained that the hospital had only booked her for 30 minutes.
I was surprised and asked, 'Really? MRI scans, how will we communicate?' I pondered this as the same nurse walked back and forth, supposedly working in the MRI scan area. I approached her for a chat and explained the situation about the interpreter's limited time. I asked her what we could do.
The nurse walked over to the receptionist, and they had a conversation about booking another interpreter. I asked the interpreter if she could arrange for a backup interpreter when she left, but she informed me that they didn't have any backup interpreters. The interpreter agency had plenty of bookings in the area, being a big city in the UK. I felt stuck and it seemed impossible.
I had an idea and grabbed the nurse to briefly discuss how the MRI scan would work for me, specifically regarding breathing techniques. The interpreter was with me for about two minutes to discuss and agree upon the plan. Then, the interpreter left.
During the scan, I lay down on the MRI machine, expecting noise and movement across my face with LED lights. But being Deaf, I wondered how they would communicate instructions for holding and releasing my breath. Earlier, we had agreed upon a method involving the nurse touching my toe to signal when to hold and release my breath. When the scan finished, the machine moved down, and we couldn't communicate between me and the nurses. Then, I left the hospital feeling sad.
Now, I urge hospitals across the UK to follow the legislation, such as the Accessible Information Standard Act 2016 for England and Wales. I'm not sure about the equivalent act in Scotland, but a minimum of two or three hours with an interpreter seems reasonable. 30 minutes? A fixed time slot of 30 minutes can be problematic if there are delays, backlogs, or technical issues.
The interpreter may have to leave to attend other appointments, leaving Deaf patients without support. So please, consider a minimum of two or three hours. Alternatively, utilise remote interpreting apps with nurses or doctors via tablets connected to Wi-Fi or an effective firewall. Or consider providing in-house BSL interpreters.
Thank you for watching.
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