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Supporting People Who are Deafblind/Dual Sensory Impaired

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Practical advice and information for anyone involved or interested in deafblindness/dual sensory impairment
Information for people who are Deafblind/Dual Sensory Impaired

What is Dual Sensory impairment/Deafblindness?

Dual Sensory impairment/Deafblindness is the combined loss of vision and hearing. Few people have a total loss of both vision and hearing; others have some remaining use of one or both senses. Dual Sensory impairment can also be called deafblindness. It can occur from birth, (congenital), or later on in life (acquired) as a result of illness, age, accident or genetic conditions. The unique nature of dual sensory impairment means that people with the condition face difficulties with:

• Communication
• Mobility
• Access to information

Dual sensory impairment can often result in people feeling isolated and lonely. The combined vision and hearing loss can result in difficulties getting out and about, doing shopping, meeting friends or accessing information. Some people with dual sensory impairment may not be able to use the telephone, identify that there is someone at the door, or tell the time and may rely heavily on families and carers to support them. They may also have difficulties in following current affairs on the television and in newspapers, or accessing other sources of information such as transport timetables and price lists.

Because the challenges facing people with a dual sensory impairment are unique, the services provided for this group of people need to be equally specialised. The combined loss often leads to complex difficulties, requiring specialist support. People with a dual sensory impairment need to be identified, recognised and have their needs assessed appropriately. They may also choose to be registered as having a dual sensory loss to access the specialist services that they may be entitled to, but this is not a requirement to accessing services. An individual approach to services is taken due to the nature of the condition, as each person will have different levels of combined vision and hearing loss and will function very differently as a result of this.