A deaf patient had to rely on her mom and lip reading to talk with hospital staff. Now Ascension Columbia St. Mary's will pay her $35,000

Ascension Columbia St. Mary's Hospital in Milwaukee has agreed to pay $35,000 to a deaf patient for whom the hospital failed to provide sign language interpretation during hospital stays in 2017 and 2018, according to the settlement agreement, provided by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.

The settlement was finalized this week, following an investigation by the U.S. Attorney's Office into a complaint that Columbia St. Mary's had violated the Americans with Disabilities Act, which requires hospitals and other health care providers to provide interpreters or other services to people with disabilities to ensure effective communication.

The patient, whom the settlement does not name, was admitted to Columbia St. Mary's in December 2017 for a surgery. Though she was provided with a sign language interpreter before surgery, she was not provided with a qualified interpreter while recovering from surgery in the hospital, according to the settlement agreement.

Instead, hospital staff relied on the patient's mother to help communicate with the patient, as well as other, ineffective means, the investigation found. As a result, the patient did not fully understand the care or medical decisions being considered for her.

A little over a week after she was discharged, the patient was readmitted to Columbia St Mary's because of an infection of her surgical site and other complications from the surgery, the settlement says. She was treated and released a few days later, but again Columbia St. Mary's did not provide a qualified interpreter, according to the settlement.

Instead, hospital staff again relied on the patient's mother to communicate, used written notes and relied on lip reading, the investigation found.

As part of the settlement, Columbia St. Mary's also agreed to conduct additional training on the Americans with Disabilities Act and to report any future complaints of possible ADA violations to federal authorities.

When asked why the settlement took so long to resolve, Kenneth Gales, a spokesman with the U.S. Attorney's Office, said the agency would not provide information beyond its published statement. He did not answer whether there are any other complaints of ADA violations pending against Columbia St. Mary's, saying that the U.S. Attorney's Office does not comment on the status of investigations.

Those interested in learning more about the obligations of healthcare providers under the ADA may call the U.S. Department of Justice’s ADA information line at 800-514-0301 or 833-610-1264 (TTY), or visit ada.gov. ADA complaints may be filed with the U.S. Department of Justice at ada.gov/file-a-complaint.