Mental health and deafness: An investigation of current residential services and service users throughout the UK

There is growing awareness of unmet need and deficiencies in services for deaf people with mental health problems, but a paucity of systematic evaluation to underpin service development. The purpose of this study was to identify and assess all residential facilities that provide services to deaf people with mental health problems, and to elicit detailed information on the demography, clinical characteristics and service needs of the residents. A survey carried out in 1996 identified all establishments providing residential care for deaf people with mental health problems. Facilities accommodating at least two residents with a mental health diagnosis were subjected to a more in-depth profile. The survey covered a total of 555 residents living in 44 centres, of whom 372 were deaf adults in the age range 16-65. Twenty facilities and 80% of their residents ( n =160) were assessed in more detail. Residents had high levels of functional impairment, with two-thirds having moderate or severe problems in at least one domain of personal functioning including cleanliness, cooking, shopping, use of transport and budgeting (including 35% of those who had not actually received a formal diagnosis). The domains of social activity and risk of harm to self and others, more than mental illness per se, differentiated residents in psychiatric wards from those in staffed hostels. These residents are generally younger than their hearing counterparts, and appear to have had a much lower level of contact with psychiatric services, in spite of their obvious and significant mental health problems.