Deaf/hearing impaired

If you are deaf or hearing impaired, a British Sign Language interpreter can be booked for your appointment.

We also use deaf-blind communication professionals to help you during your appointment if you have dual-sensory loss.

Request an interpreter by email

We have a dedicated text service for people who are deaf, hard of hearing, or have speech difficulty. Send text messages to 07800 005 502 text service and we will ensure your message gets to the right person and we will text you back with the response.

Hearing loops

Hearing loops, also known as induction loops, are special assisted sound systems designed for hearing aid users.

We have hearing loops across our hospitals - find the locations in this document.

Hearing Loops

Blind/visually impaired

If you require information to be provided in large print or braille, this can be requested be emailing bhrut.interpretbookings@nhs.net or by calling our Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS) on 01708 435 454.

We have a blind and visually impaired patient access group that works with our Trust to improve how we provide services. If you would like more information, please email bhrut.patientexperience@nhs.net.

We also provide services to support our patients during their visit to the hospital. These include patient transport and advocacy service.

If your first language isn't English

We have access to on-demand interpreters (telephone and video) who can help you to communicate with our staff. You can request an interpreter by calling the Language Shop on 0203 376 8182 or 0203 376 8185.

You can also request an interpreter by speaking to the staff looking after you. Please let them know as soon as possible to allow the request to be processed.

If you are not able to attend your appointment, please cancel the appointment and also request that the interpreter is cancelled.

Contact us

If you have a query about help communicating during your appointment that hasn’t been addressed on this page, please email bhrut.pals@nhs.net or call 01708 435 454 for Queen’s Hospital and 0208 970 8234 for King George Hospital.

Accessible Information Standard 

The Accessible Information Standard is a legal requirement for all NHS health and social care providers in England to identify communication needs and provide information in people’s preferred format.

The six key principles of the Accessible Information Standard:

• Identify- You must ask if the patient have any communication needs relating to a disability or sensory loss and find out how to meet those needs.
• Record - Those needs must be recorded clearly and consistently in the individual’s records to be made visible.
• Flag - Use flags or alerts to make it clear that the person has communication needs, so staff are aware and can act accordingly.
• Share - Information about an individual’s communication needs must be shared with other teams and services, with the person’s consent, to ensure continuity of care
• Meet - Services must take steps to ensure that people receive information in a format they can understand and are given the appropriate support for effective communication
• Review - Consistent and regular reviews of an individual’s information and communication needs within their patient or service user records, and on clinical management or administration systems