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Prevalence of hearing impairment is quite common in people with learning disabilities (double jeopardy). However, this debilitating co‐morbidity remains largely undetected by carers and professionals due to presence of additional disabilities and complex clinical presentation in this population on the one hand, and lack of specialist hearing impairment service provision and difficulty in accessing generic audiology services on the other hand. This article aims to provide practical guidance on assessment and management of hearing impairment in people with learning disabilities by offering a narrative review of available literature on gaps in service delivery.

This paper explores the findings from a recent study about the assessment and management of care for older people who may have a sensory impairment. Using qualitative research methods, the work focused on non‐specialist practitioners who are responsible for the assessment and management of care for older people and their carers. The findings are based upon the analysis of in‐depth interviews with non‐specialist practitioners, specialist workers and managers from statutory and voluntary sector agencies. Older people with a hearing impairment or a visual impairment are not a homogenous group of people with a single set of needs or service support networks. It is the existence of non‐specialist practitioners, carrying out the assessment and management of care for older people that draw together in one study the three areas of visual impairment, hearing impairment and dual impairment. The findings relate to practitioners' awareness of sensory impairment in their local community; how practitioners assess and manage care; access to services; staff training and development; and, information strategies. The interface between non‐specialists and practitioners with particular expertise in sensory impairment is also examined. The implications for policy and practice are identified.

The purpose of this research is to analyse the accessibility of Spanish beaches for blind people and their guide dogs as an inclusive tourist destination for national and international tourists.

This empirical research used a quantitative and qualitative methodology from public and private organizations, which intends to give voice to blind people to improve their quality of life.

This study presents a new and surprising contribution to the issue of accessibility of beaches for blind people and future studies related to this topic. Findings revealed that Spain has only nine adapted beaches for blind people, and most Spanish tourist destinations exclude blind people and its guide dogs from enjoying the beach and the sun and their facilities. In Spain there are in total 3,547 beaches; 10.3% of these are adapted beaches for people with reduced mobility, whereas only 0.25% are adapted beaches for blind people. Indeed, results also suggest that more efforts are required in response to the needs of blind people in tourism and transport activities by researchers, academics and government bodies.

The contribution of this paper is especially important for the management of the accessibility of Spanish beaches for blind people and their guide dogs by public and private organizations.

这项实证研究采用了来自公共和私人组织的定量和定性方法, 旨在让盲人发声以改善他们的生活质量。

本研究的目的是分析作为国内和国际游客包容性旅游目的地的西班牙海滩对盲人及其导盲犬的可达性。

这项研究对盲人的海滩可达性和与该主题相关的未来研究提出了新的和令人惊讶的贡献。 调查结果显示, 西班牙只有9个适合盲人的海滩, 大多数西班牙旅游目的地都将盲人及其导盲犬排除在享受海滩和阳光及其设施外。 西班牙共有 3,547 个海滩, 其中 10.3% 是适合行动不便人士使用的海滩, 而只有 0.25% 是适合盲人使用的海滩。 事实上, 结果还表明, 研究人员、学术界、政府机构、私营企业以及一个更加公平、团结和慷慨的社会需要做出更多努力来满足盲人在旅游和交通活动中的需求。

本文的贡献对于公共和私人组织管理盲人及其导盲犬在西班牙海滩的可达性尤为重要。

El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar la accesibilidad de las playas españolas para personas ciegas y sus perros guía como destino turístico inclusivo para turistas nacionales e internacionales.

Esta investigación utilizó una metodología cuantitativa y cualitativa apoyada con datos de organizaciones públicas y privadas, con la finalidad de dar voz a las personas ciegas para mejorar su calidad de vida.

Este estudio presenta una nueva y sorprendente contribución sobre la accesibilidad de las playas para personas ciegas y futuros estudios relacionados con este tema. Los resultados revelaron que España tiene solo 9 playas adaptadas para invidentes, la mayoría de los destinos turísticos españoles están excluyendo a las personas invidentes y sus perros guía para disfrutar de la playa y el sol, y de sus instalaciones. En España hay un total de 3.547 playas, el 10,3% son playas adaptadas para personas con movilidad reducida, mientras que solo el 0,25% son playas adaptadas para invidentes. De hecho, los resultados también sugieren que se requieren más esfuerzos en respuesta a las necesidades de las personas ciegas en las actividades de turismo y transporte por parte de investigadores, académicos, organismos gubernamentales, empresas privadas y una sociedad más justa, solidaria y generosa.

La contribución de este trabajo es especialmente importante para la gestión de la accesibilidad de las playas españolas para personas ciegas y sus perros guía por parte de organismos públicos y privados.

Deafness and hearing impairments have a very interesting and ancient history. The term hearing impairments is used here to refer to any dysfunction of the hearing organ, regardless of the etiology, degree of hearing loss, and service provision implications. The history of hearing impairments can be traced back to centuries before Christ (BC). For instance, around 1000 BC a Hebrew law provided those with deafness and hearing impairments limited rights to own property and marry. Nonetheless, although this law protected people with hearing impairments from being cursed and maltreated by others, it did not grant them full participation in rituals of the temple (ASLInfo, 2010). People with hearing impairments were considered to be “subnormal” by great philosophers of that time. For instance, between 427 and 347 BC, Plato's philosophy of innate intelligence was the vogue. It claimed that all intelligence was present at birth. Therefore, all people were born with ideas and languages in their minds and required only time to demonstrate their outward sign of intelligence through speech. People with hearing impairments could not speak and were therefore considered incapable of rational thoughts and ideas. Indeed in 355 BC Aristotle was reported to have claimed that those who were born deaf would become stupid and incapable of reason. According to him, people with hearing impairments could not be educated because without the ability to hear, people could not learn. Greek which was spoken in his society was considered the perfect language and all people who did not speak Greek including people with deafness were considered Barbarians (ASLInfo, 2010).

Disorders of speech and language include myriad diagnoses that vary in incidence and prevalence across age span and cultures. Disorders can range from those that do not impinge upon general communication, learning or psychosocial function, such as a mild speech disturbance, like a lisp, to global aphasia with a complete lack of communication ability. The short- and long-term effects of these impairments are often directly related to the age at onset, duration, co-morbidities, access to intervention by qualified professionals, and the societal response to the disability. In cultures that take a dim view of any type of deviation from the norm, there may be less access to diagnosis and treatment, as well as a hesitancy to seek out available options for treatment. Additionally, for those countries in which there are larger issues of general health, economic support, and quality of care, the nature of the disability may receive little or no attention simply due to national priorities or limited access to resources. Although, globally, disorders of speech and language are not exclusively limited to those countries with poorer health outcomes, in general, speech and language services may be less accessible or absent in poverty-stricken nations of the world. In many cases, these countries are at greater risk for many of the disorders simply due to environmental and social conditions, such as lack of early access to health care and preventative interventions. This chapter explores Global Perspectives on Speech and Language Impairments.

The purpose of this study was to assess lifetime economic costs for people with four developmental disabilities (DDs): mental retardation, cerebral palsy, hearing loss, and vision impairment. Estimates were generated for direct medical costs, direct non-medical costs, and productivity losses resulting from increased morbidity and premature mortality. Findings suggest that lifetime costs, in excess of costs for individuals without DDs, are approximately $870,000 per person for mental retardation and $800,000 per person for cerebral palsy (in 2000 dollars). Analogous cost estimates for hearing loss and vision impairment are approximately $330,000 and $470,000, respectively. Roughly four-fifths of total costs reflect productivity losses.

The purpose of this chapter is to provide a comprehensive view of special education in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The chapter starts with the origins and attitudes of the Saudi citizens regarding persons with special needs. Next the chapter examines trends in legislation and litigation pertaining to persons who are disabled which led to the government’s passage of Regulations of Special Education Programs and Institutes (RSEPI) in 2001. The RSEPI regulations were modeled after the United States 1997 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Included in the discussion of the RSEPI is a delineation of the Disability Code which is comprised of 16 articles. The author also provides information on prominent educational intervention employed in the Kingdom as well details about the preparation of paraprofessionals and special education teachers. The chapter concludes with the special education progress that has occurred since the passage of RSEPI.

The purpose of this study is to present a training system on smart phones to develop fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment and then to determine the effectiveness of the training system in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

The analytical descriptive methodology and experimental methodology were used to examine the training system in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

The findings of this study indicate that the training system on smart phones was effective in developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment.

This study has some limitations such as limited sample size, lack of control group and lack of long-term.

This study provides practical implications for educators, researchers and practitioners in terms of using smart phone applications in educational processes for people with disabilities.

This study has social implications for people with disabilities as it provides them with access to education through smart phone applications which can help them develop their skills in fashion and textile design.

This study presents an original model of a training system on smart phones for developing fashion and textile concepts among the female students with severe hearing impairment, which can be used as a reference for other studies related to this field.