Disability Inclusion in Child Protection and Gender-Based Violence Programs

Women's Refugee Commission
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TOOL 8: TIPS FOR COMMUNICATING WITH PEOPLE WITH DIFFERENT TYPES OF IMPAIRMENTS

Below some tips to assist in adapting communication and engagement strategies for persons with different types of impairments:

Communicating and interacting with people with physical impairments

Communicating and interacting with people who are Deaf or hearing impaired

A note about sign language: Like spoken languages, sign languages are different between countries and regions. Some people also use unofficial sign language and in these cases, you may need to use a family member or friend to interpret. Ask them to teach you some simple signs (e.g. good, bad and thank you) and try to include these in your discussion.

Below is a selection of sign language that is mostly used in daily life:

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Communicating and interacting with people with vision impairments

Communicating and interacting with persons with intellectual impairments

People with intellectual disabilities may experience difficulty in understanding, learning, and remembering, and in applying information to new situations. It is important to note, however, that persons with intellectual disabilities can learn new things and participate in our activities, with just some small changes to the way we work.

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Communicating and interacting with persons with speech impairments