Mental health of deaf people ‘not taken seriously’ in South Africa

The deaf community’s lack of mental health support has been highlighted as September is deaf awareness month.

The South African Society of Psychiatrists said the deaf community faces many challenges which includes mental health and access to this care. “This community grapples with a host of emotional, psychological, and societal issues that can significantly impact their well-being,” it said.

Mental health in the deaf community

Dr Ian Westmore, a board member of the South African Society of Psychiatrists, said addressing mental health within South Africa’s deaf community requires both acknowledgement and action. 

According to the World Health Organisation, more than 1.5 billion people, or nearly 20% of the global population, live with hearing loss while 430 million of them experience disabling hearing loss. 

Within South Africa, a staggering 12 million people contend with some form of hearing loss 

Understanding sign language 

Westmore said that one of the most prominent obstacles facing the deaf community is communication. 

“Despite sign language being one of the nation’s 12 official languages, it remains largely unrecognised and unspoken by most hearing individuals. This lack of proficiency extends to medical professionals, creating a significant hurdle for deaf individuals in expressing their emotions, thoughts, and feelings. 

“This lack of communication can breed isolation, frustration, and exacerbate pre-existing mental health conditions.”

READ ALSO: Sign language becoming official SA language a ‘fundamental human right’

He says there is a glaring lack of awareness among healthcare providers and policymakers regarding the unique mental health needs of the deaf community. “This oversight has resulted in the underdevelopment and inadequacy of services tailored to their specific requirements.

“The mental health challenges faced by the deaf community are fundamentally distinct from those of the general population. Healthcare professionals must account for gaps in knowledge and emotional vocabulary, cultural backgrounds, and the inability to communicate mental health symptoms.

“In many cases, certain mental health concepts cannot be adequately conveyed through sign language alone. Lip-reading often falls short, and written communication cannot fully substitute spoken language. Additionally, the availability of interpreters proficient in sign language is limited, further complicating matters. Interpreters can, in addition, inadvertently introduce barriers that hinder the expression of emotions, ultimately leaving individuals feeling uncomfortable or misunderstood.”

READ ALSO: Raising awareness for deaf children

The deaf mental health never taken seriously

The South African National Deaf Association (SANDA) CEO Jabulane Blose told The Citizen: “The mental health of deaf people isn’t and has never been taken seriously or considered an integral part of holistic human development.”

The lack of access to sign language as a language of choice to most deaf people is central to the exclusion of deaf people at mental healthcare facilities and treatment, he said.

Blose adds that sign language interpreters are needed to facilitate communication. 

“At issue is the cost of sign language interpreters and who should be footing it considering most deaf people survive on a disability grant. This lack of access to mental healthcare exposes deaf people to unresolved traumas with debilitating effect on the individual, family and deaf community social fabric as a whole.

“There are also unspoken assumptions, borne out of ignorance, that deaf people are generally wild, uncontrollable and out of character which is totally false and misleading.”

READ ALSO: Anger from deaf community as another ‘fake’ interpreter used at a government event

Provincial director of DeafSA Western Cape Jabaar Mohamed agreed that there is not enough awareness when it comes to mental health in the deaf community.

“There needs to be more access to sign language and more counsellors for deaf people who know sign language,” said Mohamed.

For those born deaf, Westmore said early life stressors associated with the disability can exasperate mental health conditions later in life. 

Access to quality education

“The inability to communicate and participate in conversations, linguistic neglect, poverty, trauma and abuse can influence a child born deaf’s functioning and stress response which, in turn, impacts how they cope with stressors in adulthood.

“Access to quality education is another challenge, particularly for deaf children in South Africa. This educational disadvantage can lead to lower socioeconomic status and heightened stress, contributing further to mental health issues.”

There are varying degrees of deafness, including those born with the disability and individuals with sensorineural hearing loss due to inner ear damage or age-related factors. 

“Sensorineural hearing loss, one of the most common types of age-related hearing loss, is often overlooked but significantly diminishes the quality of life. It leads to feelings of isolation, reduced social activity, and a sense of exclusion, culminating in a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms,” said Westmore.