Over the past year,
The Nordic Leadership Forum on Deafblindness has reviewed and refined this crucial document, which serves as a cornerstone for understanding and addressing the unique challenges faced by individuals with combined hearing and vision impairments.
Whilst the core definition itself remains unchanged; we have made significant additions to the accompanying commentary. These enhancements offer greater clarity and depth, ensuring that professionals and caregivers alike may gain a clearer understanding, and apply this definition in their work.
In addition to the existing English version, this publication now includes translations in Danish, Finnish, Norwegian, Icelandic, and Swedish. By making the definition accessible in multiple Nordic languages, we are promoting a unified approach to supporting individuals with deafblindness throughout the Nordic region.
The journey toward defining deafblindness began in the 1980s, and it has evolved through careful consideration and expertise. The most recent revision occurred in 2016, and the
Deafblind field at the Nordic Welfare Centre has committed to a four-year cycle of review and publication in cooperation with the Nordic Leadership Forum on Deafblindness. This approach ensures that the definition remains current, relevant, and reflective of the latest understanding in the field.
The Nordic definition of deafblindness is more than just a set of words; it serves as a professional tool outlining the intricate challenges experienced by those living with combined hearing and vision impairments. It provides a common language and framework for practitioners, researchers, and policymakers across the Nordic countries, enabling us to work together more effectively in supporting this unique population.
With a definition that sees deafblindness as a distinct disability the Nordic region is at the forefront in the field of deafblindness, due to our longstanding tradition of Nordic cooperation. While many countries still view deafness and blindness as separate conditions, our definition emphasises the unique challenges that arise from their combination. This perspective is gradually gaining traction internationally, with more countries adopting similar approaches.
Individuals with deafblindness constitute a very small population in each of our Nordic countries. This reality emphasizes the necessity of cooperation. By working together, sharing experiences, and building upon each other's knowledge we have been able to improve both knowledge and practice - contributing to improved support for individuals with deafblindness across the entire Nordic region.
Gøran Andreas Gregor Caspian Forsgren
Senior adviser, Nordic Welfare Centre