For the month of May, Safe’N’Clear is recognizing Dr. Christopher Moreland as our featured Deaf Leader.

Christopher was born deaf, though his parents did not realize until he was two years old and his language development was behind what they had experienced with his older brother. Moreland’s parents and brother decided to learn sign language and support his education in both signed and spoken language. Moreland was mainstreamed in public school with deaf and hearing classmates while working with sign language interpreters throughout his education.

Moreland attended the University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston for medical school and continued his education through residency at University of California at Davis. “College at the University of Texas at Austin was a powerful formative experience for me,” said Moreland. He moved from major to major, enjoying time in theater, linguistics, and anthropology before settling on Plan II, an interdisciplinary liberal arts program at UT Austin, while pursuing pre- medical studies. Moreland continued to work with sign-language interpreters while expanding his identity as a deaf person, thanks to the vibrant Austin deaf community.

“My deaf identity has been core to my life and trajectory. I learned through communication challenges among hearing peers how to innovate in communication and empathize with those who may navigate life in ways that do not fit the norm – skills that have served me well in medicine,” said Moreland. Those experiences also created the foundation for his academic research and advocacy for people with disabilities as a growing and vital segment of the US’s healthcare workforce.

Moreland enjoys the many benefits of being deaf. He is bilingual and bimodal which has helped him further explore communication, relationships, and diversity from new angles. As a medical student and physician, he continues to work with excellent interpreters throughout his career, which has allowed him the access he needs to thrive as a physician and teaching faculty member which, in turn, enables him to support others in their education and careers as healthcare professionals.

Moreland sees patients in the hospital and works regularly with fellow physicians, advanced practice providers, residents, and students, which Moreland contends are great opportunities for learning from each other and showing first-hand the importance of inclusiveness!

“The clear-window masks were always helpful to facilitate full-face communication as a signer and [the clear-window masks] became critical during the pandemic’s onset! Being able to see one another’s faces through these masks helps facilitate understanding and trust – the cornerstone of any therapeutic relationship,” said Moreland.

Christopher Moreland is a member and past president of the Association of Medical Professionals with Hearing Loss (AMPHL). AMPHL is hosting their yearly conference in Chicago, IL from June 20-June 23, 2024. If you are interested in learning more about AMPHL or attending the conference, visit https://www.amphl.org/2024-conference. We are honored to feature Dr. Christopher Moreland and thank him for all he has done and continues to do to make sure communication is accessible to all, especially in healthcare and dental care.