Make screening day accessible from invitation to results

Ask what would help, in a private channel

Add a line to the invitation: “If written instructions, a language or sign-language interpreter, an accessible route, or another arrangement would help you attend, please contact the coordinator privately. Tell us the arrangement you need.” Give a text-based option as well as a phone number. Ask for a preferred way to respond.

Ask early enough to arrange support and confirm it with the person before the visit. Avoid guessing a preferred language from someone’s surname or assuming that all people who are deaf use the same communication method. In a Cebu workplace, staff can offer a choice of Cebuano, Filipino, or English where those options are actually available.

Walk the route before sending directions

Start where the employee will arrive. Check whether directions identify the right entrance, floor, lift or step-free route, and check-in point. If a clinic cannot provide an arrangement someone needs, ask the provider about alternatives before confirming their appointment.

Example: replace a spoken-only queue with a numbered card and a visible cue at reception. Agree how an employee who needs assistance will recognize the cue and who will meet them. Avoid posting employee names or results on a public screen.

Keep communication accessible during the handoff

WHO recommends facing the person, providing visual information where useful, and asking about communication preferences. Have a brief written explanation ready for the arrival desk. Ask the provider to arrange appropriate professional interpretation when needed, especially for individual instructions and clinical results.

Brief reception on confirmed arrangements without circulating diagnoses. A note such as “please send a text when the room is ready” can be sufficient. Ask the clinical team how it can adapt its communication while maintaining the validity of the actual hearing test; coordination staff should not change test instructions themselves.

Before the employee leaves, check that the route to results and follow-up works in their preferred format too. A well-planned visit should not end with the instruction to telephone a number someone cannot use.