Clinical and cultural issues in caring for deaf people

The clinical practice of family medicine is increasingly cross-cultural. Promoting culturally sensitive and competent health care is one of the goals of medical educators in guiding medical students and residents, as well as designing continuing education for family physicians. Working with minority communities is essential to meet that goal. The Deaf community is a linguistic and cultural minority group that is often overlooked. Working with the Deaf community to help develop cultural competency and sensitivity has potential benefits. This article introduces some of the sociocultural experiences of deafness and their relevance in health care settings.