Within the framework of the inclusion policies promoted by the municipal administration of mayor Alfredo Francolini, a video call line for deaf or hearing-impaired individuals has been put into operation. It is now enabled and offers personalized assistance 24 hours a day, all year round.
Mayor Alfredo Francolini, together with the Chief of Cabinet and Secretary of Government, Alberto Armanazqui, the Secretary of Health Dr. Mauro García, the Director of Disability, Marcelo Primitivo, accompanied by the Judge of the Family and Juvenile Criminal Court No. 3 of the city of Concordia, Dr. Noelí Ballhorst, presented the video call telephone line for deaf or hearing-impaired individuals: 3455292222
“For us, it is important and we are glad that the disability department has proposed this video call line for the entire deaf community, following a demand that grew during the pandemic, and it is a source of pride that it is being developed for the first time in Concordia, as we are always working to be a more inclusive city,” expressed mayor Alfredo Francolini.
Subsequently, the Mayor remarked that “it is the first time that an initiative of this nature has been presented with a 24-hour personalized service, and in principle, it will only be for Concordia, but the idea is to reach the entire department by working in an articulated manner with the Municipalities and Government Boards of the Department.”
MORE ACCESSIBILITY IN COMMUNICATION
For his part, the Director of Disability of the Municipality of Concordia, Marcelo Primitivo, indicated that “within the framework of the public policies carried out by mayor Alfredo Francolini, one of the concerns is always to work to achieve accessibility to communication, especially with the deaf community, and I believe that today we have taken a step toward achieving a slightly more inclusive city.”
“As of this Wednesday, we have the video call line in operation for deaf individuals, who can use it for any emergency 24 hours a day by contacting 345 5 529 222, and they will be assisted by Sign Language Interpreter Silvina Helbert,” confirmed Primitivo, and mentioned that “as the days go by, we will be adjusting details with a dynamic evaluation process, and as specific cases arise, we will adapt and correct them.”
Sign Language Interpreter Silvina Helbert pointed out that “for me, it is a great responsibility, and I want to thank the trust placed in me by the Director of Disability and our mayor Alfredo Francolini to carry out this proposal, which arises from articulated work, and also to have the help and advice of the deaf representative Ayelén Sandoval and the entire team of the Directorate.”
“The service is completely free and via video call; the deaf community is very accustomed to this technology, and it is to be used in cases of emergency with personalized attention and availability 24 hours a day,” noted Silvina.
The presentation of the video call line for the deaf community was attended by the Judge of the Family and Juvenile Criminal Court No. 3 of the city of Concordia, Dr. Noelí Ballhorst, who highlighted that “I come from another city, I have been a Family Judge for a year by competition in Concordia, and one of the issues that pleasantly surprised me when I arrived is the Disability service provided by the Municipality, as they have always been available, and we in the Family Justice system have many people with restricted capacity, so working together with the municipality is very important.”
ARTICULATED WORK WITH THE JUDICIARY: MORE ACCESSIBILITY
“From the Justice system of Concordia, we do not have the capacity to communicate with deaf or hearing-impaired individuals, and it is fundamental to be able to receive that call, which they will now be able to answer and be able to transfer if it is a report, a concern, or a request to the Justice system,” she pointed out.
“Personally, and also on behalf of the Judiciary, we celebrate the creation of this line, which will provide more accessibility for them and for us to provide a response from the Justice system, which sometimes does not have this service—which would also be fundamental to have from the Justice system—but since it is available from the Municipality, we can coordinate it, because it is essential for the people,” concluded Judge Ballhorst.
In addition to those mentioned, the presentation of the new video call system was attended by Dr. Daniel Kueider representing the Felipe Heras hospital, members of the Health teams and the Employment Office of the Municipality, and members of the deaf community of Concordia.