COMING CLEAN—AND STAYING SOBER
Deaf-accessible online support is available for those recovering from addiction

For a person who is addicted to drugs or alcohol, and who is also deaf or hard-of-hearing, finding support for recovery is almost impossible. Around the United States, there are a handful of substance-abuse treatment programs striving to meet the communication needs of people with hearing loss. The biggest challenges occur when the newly sober person returns home. Twelve-step support groups, such as Alcoholics Anonymous, are often inaccessible. People who are hard-of-hearing struggle to hear during group discussions. People who are deaf may need a sign-language interpreter to participate—an additional cost that is difficult for volunteer groups to manage.

A new Website has been developed in hopes of bridging the communication needs of this population. Addiction Help! Deaf & Hard of Hearing is a project of the Michigan Coalition for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People. The organization, comprised of agencies, business, and individuals who serve the Deaf and hard-of-hearing community, is the sponsor of the E-Michigan Deaf & Hard of Hearing People Website (www.michdhh.org). This is a highly popular site, initiated with a grant from SBC Communications Inc., featuring information, resources, news, and an extensive calendar of deaf and hard-of-hearing-related events in Michigan. Addiction Help! is located on the E-Michigan Website, and can also be accessed directly at www.addictionhelpdhh.org.

Addiction Help! features links to online Twelve Steps-type support groups on the Web. Some of the support groups are specifically for people who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. Others are for the general population, but because of the text format of discussions, are more accessible to those unable to adequately hear and comprehend speech. These online groups are accessible and available 24 hours a day!

Another unique feature of the Website is video clips that use American Sign Language to describe the steps used by Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) groups. These ASL video clips were donated by the Minnesota Chemical Dependency Program for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Individuals and can be viewed on most computers.

Addiction Help! Deaf & Hard of Hearing is the only place on the Web that strives to list all of Michigan’s Deaf/HoH-accessible substance abuse-recovery resources, including interpreted AA meetings. Service providers who are not listed on the site, and who provide communication-accessible services (in ASL and/or provide assistive-listening equipment), should contact the Website editor for inclusion. Browsers will also find basic information about substance abuse and links to information specific to people who are Deaf/HoH.

Visit Addiction Help! Deaf & Hard of Hearing today, and share it with others who may benefit. The URL is www.addictionhelpdhh.org.

Background:

The Michigan Coalition for Deaf and Hard of Hearing People is a statewide coalition of agencies and organizations working together to improve accessibility and services for Michigan’s Deaf and HoH people. The Coalition meets quarterly to address issues pertinent to Deaf/HoH people. The Coalition is administered by the Michigan Association for Deaf, Hearing, and Speech Services under that organization’s 501(c)3 status.

The SBC Foundation is the charitable-giving arm of SBC Communications Inc. The SBC Foundation supports efforts that enrich and strengthen diverse communities nationwide, particularly those with an emphasis on education and technology and those that benefit underserved populations. SBC Foundation-backed programs are designed to increase access to information technologies, broaden technology training and professional-skills development, and effectively integrate new technologies to enhance education and economic development. The Foundation Center has consistently ranked the SBC Foundation among the nation's top fifteen corporate foundations. In 2002, the SBC Foundation launched SBC Excelerator, a multimillion-dollar competitive-grants program that funds nonprofit organizations in their efforts to digitally connect communities.

SBC Communications Inc. is a Fortune 50 company whose subsidiaries, operating under the SBC brand, provide a full range of voice, data, networking, e-business, directory publishing and advertising, and related services to businesses, consumers and other telecommunications providers. SBC holds a 60% ownership interest in Cingular Wireless, which serves more than 50 million wireless customers. SBC companies provide high-speed DSL Internet access lines to more American consumers than any other provider and are among the nation's leading providers of Internet services. SBC companies also now offer satellite TV service. Additional information about SBC and SBC products and services is available at www.sbc.com.

Contact Person:

Julie Eckhardt, Editor, E-Michigan Deaf & Hard of Hearing People
231/922-2943 or jewel@chartermi.net

Posted on June 15, 2006

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