A deaf Kirklees mum had to rely on her five-year-old daughter to translate for her at the doctors.
The incident has been revealed by patients’ group Healthwatch who are highlighting “significant” barriers for disabled people visiting GPs and dentists.
The woman said: “One time I had to use my child to translate for me - she was five at the time.
“The staff were talking to her and saying to her ‘Tell your mum this, tell your mum that’.
“They were ignoring me. It wasn’t appropriate.”
Healthwatch Kirklees director Rory Deighton, said his staff had spoken to 700 people in the region who suffered with hearing problems and found many NHS services lacked facilities.
“There needs to be proper access to an interpreter,“ he said.
“Having a five-year-old do it is not appropriate.
“We’ve found the council is generally up to speed with hearing loops and so on, but the NHS has been slow to catch up with equality legislation.”
The national study found that in some parts of Britain deaf people are being told they can only book a doctor’s appointment on the phone - despite their disability.
Other practices are not fully accessible by wheelchair, leaving many disabled people facing major hurdles even getting in to see their GP.
Health watchdog the Care Quality Commission admitted the findings are “worrying”.
Katherine Rake, chief executive of Healthwatch England, said: “Up and down the country, local Healthwatch are hearing stories from disabled people struggling to access vital GP and dentist appointments.
“If people can’t access primary care services, which act as the gateway to all other healthcare, this could have a negative knock-on effect on their ongoing treatment and their overall health and well-being.”
