Barrier-free Counselling for Deaf Victims of Violence

Cooperation between the Women Helpline against Violence and RelayService, a translation and telephone exchange service for deaf people, has made the anonymous emergency hotline 0800/222 555 of the Association of Autonomous Austrian Women’s Shelters accessible free of charge for deaf and sign language competent hearing impaired girls and women. Not yet around the clock, but at least Mondays to Fridays from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. – the expansion and the development of an app are being planned. Thanks to this cooperation, deaf or hearing impaired victims of any form of violence and their relatives have barrier-free access, from anywhere in Austria, to the initial counselling and crisis counselling of the Women Helpline.