 |
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
        |
(Maryland Relay cont.) Using a speakerphone makes HCO
easier to use. When dialing Relay's 800 number, you hear the phone ring,
the operator comes on to announce that this Maryland Relay operator, such
and such, then you tell the operator the number you wish to call. You then hear the phone ring, and the person (or sometimes the answering machine) answers. The operator then announces, if answered by a live person, that this is a Relay call and explains the Relay procedure if this is the person's first experience with Relay. You can ask the relay operator not to announce that this is a Relay call, that you will do the announcing. For example, you can say, "This is Rebecca. I am calling through Maryland Relay. I can hear you, but because of my speech disability, the operator will voice what I type from my TTY. Please be patient while I type."
The third service is SPEECH-TO-SPEECH (STS). This service allows a person with a speech disability to use their own voice with the assistance of a specially trained operator who understands the various speech patterns of the speech disabled. STS calls are very similar to a regular phone call with the exception of a third party who is the relay operator revoicing what the person with a speech disability is saying. Sometimes the person being called can understand the speech pattern of the speech disabled person. The relay operator is there in the background should there be a problem in communication. The relay operator only repeats verbatim (revoices) what the person with the speech disability is saying to the person on the other end. A standard phone or one that has a speakerphone is all one would need for this service. People with a speech disability who use an augmentative device or have speech synthesizers can utilize this service as well. Thus, with these three services made available through every state's relay service, the speech disabled individual can independently make calls on their own anywhere, anytime. YOU can have the opportunity to "talk" on the phone! People with speech disabilities can use two other relay features that would allow the user to listen and respond in real time. The two features are 2-line HCO and 2-line HCO/Speech-to-Speech. Read more on these two features by clicking on the "What's New?" on the links bar. |
|
*Types of Equipment-- These are some of the types of equipment provided by each state equipment distribution program. Some states have a link to their equipment distribution programs on their Web sites.
|
|
|
ClipArt.Com |
updated 3/08
SPEECH-TO-SPEECH
(STS)
