News

How Those with Hearing Loss Can Get Started with Relay South Dakota

As we age, we evolve. We grow stronger, knowledge turns into wisdom and practice creates new skills. It’s balanced out as other abilities start to fade: our vision might grow blurry, and our ears might not be as sharp.

The Americans with Disabilities Act: Where It’s Been, Where It’s Going

For more than 30 years, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has ensured increased access to housing, telecommunications, education and much more for individuals with qualifying disabilities. The landmark civil rights legislation—which has enjoyed broad bipartisan support since its earliest days—prevents discrimination based on an array of conditions. The law represents an important turning point in the process of empowering individuals who have disabilities to more fully participate in day-to-day American life.

Mobile Phone Accessibility Features

Technology impacts communities in different ways. For the deaf and hard-of-hearing community, assistive technology has made large leaps in recent years. Everything from digital assistants to live captioning has helped people who are deaf or hard of hearing communicate. Ever since mobile devices and internet-based technologies have become essential parts of our daily lives, accessibility has been a must. With technology improving by the day, there might be some applications that you should be aware of that slip through the cracks.

Stay Connected at No-Cost: Relay Equipment Program

A mandated nationwide system of telecommunication relay service has assisted people who are deaf, hard of hearing or have speech impairments ever since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990 was established. Over the years, it’s helped families, friends, coworkers and acquaintances stay connected. 

What is Relay South Dakota?

The goal of Relay South Dakota is to help people who are deaf, are hard of hearing, are deaf-blind or have a speech disability to be a part of the conversation in an easy-to-use, affordable manner.

Top 5 Online Resources for Age-Related Hearing Loss

One of the most common conditions affecting older people is age-related hearing loss. As you age, many different factors can negatively impact your hearing, such as exposure to loud noises, certain medications, and other conditions such as high blood pressure or diabetes. Experiencing age-related hearing loss can be frightening and confusing, but it can be managed with access to the right resources.

Check out our top 5 online resources for age-related hearing loss:

5 Ways the Deaf Community Has Come a Long Way Since TTY Equipment

Tech advancements have made an impact on the everyday lives of many people—and the deaf and hard-of-hearing community is no exception. Advancements in telephones, hearing aids, FM systems, cochlear implants and other TTY technologies have undoubtedly made their marks on the population.

But what does this impact look like, and how has it affected relationships with the hearing community?

The Gift of Communication: 3 Programs Ideal for Communication Access

It’s the holiday season – and what better gift than that of communication? For those who are deaf, hard of hearing or speech-disabled, communication can be a very useful gift.

Luckily Relay South Dakota offers some programs ideally built for this type of recipient – here’s a rundown of the services available.

What is the National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program?

Communication assistance isn’t just limited to support for deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals. In fact, there’s a national organization that provides tools specifically for deaf-blind people looking to improve their communication access.

The National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program (NDBEDP), or iCanConnect, is a program designed to help individuals with combined hearing and vision loss obtain communication technology.

Living with Hearing Loss: 4 Resources Right Here in South Dakota

One of the perceived downfalls of living in a largely rural state is the lack of access to needed health and wellness services. But this is not the case when it comes to living with hearing loss.

There are a variety of resources at your disposal in South Dakota for dealing with the effects of hearing loss in both children and adults.