[Breaking the silence: The emergency to improve access to healthcare for deaf patients]. / Rompre le silence : l'urgence d'améliorer l'accès aux soins pour les patients sourds.

Until this day, deafness (and hearing loss) is still a major public health concern in our society. In Switzerland, congenital hearing loss affects about 0,1% of the population. Through a literature review, this article aims to highlight the health inequalities affecting the deaf population. It also reveals the shortcomings of a healthcare system made of practitioners who have limited knowledge about the deaf population and its specific needs, and whose care, particularly in the emergency department, still remains inappropriate. Lastly, we attempt to propose concrete measures that would bridge the communication gap in practice, with the goal of improving the quality of care and reducing mutual frustrations.

La problématique de la surdité et de la difficulté d'accès aux soins qui en découle constitue encore de nos jours un important enjeu de santé publique. En Suisse, la surdité congénitale concerne environ 0,1 % de la population. À travers une revue de littérature, cet article a pour but de faire un état des lieux des inégalités en santé dont est victime la population sourde. Il révèle également la défaillance d'un système de santé fait de professionnels qui méconnaissent largement cette population et ses besoins spécifiques, et dont la prise en charge aux urgences reste particulièrement inadaptée. Nous tentons enfin de proposer des aides concrètes qui permettraient de réduire le fossé communicationnel sur le terrain, dans le but d'améliorer la qualité des soins et de diminuer les frustrations réciproques.

The development of the SWEAT questionnaire: a scale measuring costs and efforts inherent to conducting exposure sessions.

For decades, empirical studies have shown the effectiveness of exposure techniques when used in cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) treatment for anxiety disorders. A few studies are now suggesting that using Virtual Reality (VR) may be an effective way to conduct exposure and overcome some of the limitations of in vivo exposure. The aim of this study is to validate the Specific Work for Exposure Applied in Therapy (SWEAT) questionnaire that measures costs and efforts required to conduct in vivo and in virtuo exposure. A total of 265 exposure sessions (in vivo = 140; in virtuo = 125) were rated by experienced psychologists. Reliability analysis revealed three main factors in the construct of the SWEAT questionnaire. Results also showed that conducting exposure in VR is less of a burden and more readily adapted to the patients' needs than in vivo.