This video series was inspired by former Commission board member Cuong Nguyen and his wife Lisa Holbrook. In 2006, Cuong and Lisa were denied the interpreting services they needed and had the right to while Cuong was a patient in the Intensive Care Unit at Hennepin County Medical Center. They contacted the Minnesota Disability Law Center who worked with them to get a settlement agreement with HCMC to provide interpreters to patients and their family members.
Cuong and Lisa wanted the community to learn from their experience and asked the Commission to produce this health care advocacy video series. In 2013, Cuong, Lisa, and the Commission nominated Rick MacPherson for Minnesota Lawyer’s Attorney of the Year to show gratitude for the work he did on their case and other members of the Deaf community.
Originally released in 2012, MNCDHH updated this video series in 2019 because we continue to hear from the community about the barriers that happen in health care settings.
All videos include American Sign Language (ASL), English voiceover, closed captions, and descriptive transcripts.
Special thanks to the following individuals and organizations for their help with this project.
