About Deaf Services

74 active employees work in Advocates Deaf Services.
That's nearly 10% of our entire workforce.

RESIDENTIAL SERVICES serve 43 Deaf, Deaf/Blind or Hard of Hearing individuals at programs in both the Metro West ( Framingham ) and South Coastal (Quincy, Braintree, and Randolph) regions of Massachusetts. These residential services occur in the following settings: group homes, individual supports, and supported housing. Advocates Deaf Services rovide supports, services and treatment to individuals with psychiatric and developmental disabilities, medical complications, and substance abuse issues.

DAY HABILITATION provides day services for Deaf individuals with developmental and other disabilities, along with a focus on development of necessary life skills. These services include structured activities in the day program site and out in the community.

OUTPATIENT MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES provide individual, group and family counseling, Psychiatric evaluation, and crisis intervention services. Services are offered to adult Deaf, elderly Deaf, and Deaf-Blind clients.

Deaf Services Vision and Values

Advocates, Inc. believes that the best way to effectively serve Deaf clients and to become an “employer of choice” for Deaf professionals and paraprofessionals is to honor the “Deaf experience.”

Advocates achieves this by carefully attending to 4 key components of the workplace: providing a culturally competent environment; employing Deaf professionals and paraprofessionals in Deaf programs as well as in key leadership positions; maximizing communication access across the organization; and offering a comprehensive training curriculum.

Cultural Competence

• Hearing staff are offered the opportunity to learn ASL and participate in Deaf Culture trainings on a regular basis.
• Deaf and hearing staff participate together in training opportunities
• Deaf and hearing staff attend annual events such as the annual holiday party and employee recognition evening with interpreters always present
• We continually seek to maintain a culturally competent workplace in which Deaf and hearing professionals seek a way to learn from one another
• Advocates creates many social and recreational opportunities that Deaf and hearing clients can participate in such as camping trips, vacations, picnics, cookouts and softball games.

Deaf Leadership

• Deaf and hearing leaders participate in the same decision making meetings
• Deaf professionals and paraprofessionals are hired, trained and encouraged to grow within the company.
• Deaf people serve as staff and supervisors in our Deaf programs
• Deaf professionals and paraprofessionals are offered the opportunity to
  participate in training that advances their professional career, and are also
  encouraged to provide training to others.
• We seek to employ Deaf individuals in all areas of the organization
• We employ highly qualified staff in all of our service programs
• We are led by Deaf professionals in each of our service programs

Communication Access

Video Phones and TTY's are located in all Deaf program areas and key service sites:

• In each of the 7 Deaf residential programs
• At the Deaf Services office in Randolph
• At corporate headquarters in Framingham (including 4 video phones in private areas for use by Deaf staff and Deaf clients)
• 2 video phones at the Deaf Outpatient Services office and at the Psychiatric Emergency Services office.
• Plans are underway to install a video phone on site at Day Supports.

Blackberry Devices Provided For:

• Deaf Services residential programs
• Interpreter Services
• Consultants
• Clinicians-on-Call and Emergency Services
• Day Habilitation
• Directors of Clinical Services (both hearing and Deaf)
• Outpatient Services Counselors

Training

Advocates Inc. is invested in offering quality training to its staff to ensure competency and to provide a foundation for further career development.

Core Trainings:
The Human Resources Department schedules all of the Core Trainings, which include the following:

• CPR
• First Aid
• OSHA
• Fire Safety
• Strategies of Limiting Violent Episodes (S.O.L.V.E.)
• Human Right

CORE trainings are offered monthly with interpreters.

Deaf Trainers:
Advocates, Inc. uses Deaf trainers to teach CPR, First Aid, and SOLVE. 

“Deaf-Only” Trainings:
Since June 2006, Advocates has provided trainings offered for Deaf staff/supervisors
by Deaf or ASL-fluent trainers at least three times per month. Topics for these trainings have varied greatly from clinical training to understanding the day to day tasks of direct services workers. The following is a list of topics that have been covered during the past year:

• HIPAA
• Managing Client Funds
• Applied Behavioral Analysis
• Incident Reporting
• Employee Relations

Integrated Trainings:
Weekly trainings for all Advocates residential direct services workers and supervisors.

ASL interpreters are confirmed for each training.

Massachusetts Deaf Community

The following is a list of opportunities available in MA to Deaf professionals:

Active deaf sports leagues and recreational activities including organized ski trips, disc golf, basketball and softball

Interpreted professional theatre

Active state association of the Deaf - www.msad.org

Deaf professionals social group that meets regularly at many public venues

State commission for the Deaf (MCDHH) - www.mass.gov/mcdhh

Excellent interpreter services administered by MCDHH

Universities with deaf programs and services (www.bu.edu, www.northeastern.edu, and more)

Excellent school for the deaf - www.tlcdeaf.org