DEI Special Edition Spring / Summer 2024
Now, picture this. Imagine wanting to participate in a clinical trial or even a simple healthcare survey. Yet, you are not able to do so because of communication barri- ers. It's bad enough to be left in the dark when it comes to making decisions per- taining to your own health. Imagine what it ’ s like to have decisions made for you without even knowing the impact of such decisions. In all honestly, when it comes to healthcare and research, it is a rarity to find any sort of article or clinical trial that specifically dissects or includes individuals with hearing loss. Yet, there are various articles available about healthcare literacy and individuals with hearing loss. Without including individuals from this unique community, several things happen. An entire community is completely overlooked when it comes to the development of medicine or design of medical devices. For example, suppose you want to create a new insulin pump. It beeps to alert the user of any discrepancies in glucose read- ings. How is the individual with hearing loss supposed to be alerted of such discrep- ancies? Questions like these are overlooked when failure to include the very popu- lation that brings attention to them. It is also not an accurate representation of soci- ety. Society is not composed of cookie cutter versions of the same person. How can efficient and effective advances be made with medicine and medical equipment without having a negative impact on anyone with a disability? With the existence of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and astronomical advances in technology, there really are no excuses as to why members of the deaf and hard of hearing community are continuously excluded from clinical research and trials. It is time to stop hiding behind the multitude of excuses such as “ who is going to pay for the accommodation? ” or “ I don ’ t know where to start. ” Instead, be inclusive by providing the client or patient ’ s requested accommodations. Afterall, including individuals from this unique community can help improve medication ad- herence and health outcomes.
Ashley Walker, PharmD
Dr. Ashley R Walker is a pharmacist, entrepreneur, and an advocate. Dr. Walker holds a Doctor of Pharmacy degree from Xavier University of Louisiana and a Bache- lors of Science in Biotechnology from Rochester Institute of Technology. She has been a pharmacist for 6 years and recently transitioned into full time entrepreneurship. Prior to her transition, she has had experience in retail pharmacy, hospital pharmacy, and long term care pharmacy. With her personal experiences as a deaf pharmacist and advocate for the deaf and hard - of - hearing community she aims to remind the world that deafness should not be viewed as a DIS - ability but rather a UNIQUE - ability.
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