Becoming Relay Friendly

1
Becoming Relay Friendly

• How To use the Florida Relay System
• (FRS)

2
What is a Relay Call?

• This is a telephone call made by a person using a
  text telephone (TTY) who is calling a person who
  is using a standard telephone.
• If they are making a call to a person who does
  not have a TTY, then they will use the Relay
  system to make the call.
• If the caller is making a call to a person who
  has a TTY, then the call is made directly TTY to
  TTY.
• The callers who use TTYs and Relay services are
  either Deaf, Hard of Hearing or have a speech
  impairment or Deaf-blind.

3
What is a Relay Call?

• The TTY caller will dial 711 to connect to the
  Relay Operator (OPR). The caller will type the
  number they wish to dial, and the OPR will make
  the call.
• The caller types their message to the OPR and
  then the OPR reads the text to the person
  receiving the call

4
What is a Relay Call?

• When the caller has completed their sentence,
  they write GA (Go Ahead)
• The OPR will then speak the message that the
  caller has typed, saying GA, to signal to the
  call receiver that it is their turn to speak.
• The call receiver then answers back to the OPR,
  while the OPR types the message to the caller.

5
What is a Relay Call?

• The call will proceed in this manner, each party
  using GA to signal that it is the others turn to
  answer.
• When the call is ready to end, the signal is SK
  (stop keying)
• Each party will use SK-SK to complete the call,
  especially on TTYs
• When one of the parties wants to initiate the end
  of the call, they will use GA to SK

6
Common abbreviations used for TTY and Relay calls

• GA-Go ahead SK-Stop Keying BIZ-business
• ASST-assistant Bye-goodbye CLD-could
• CUZ-because DR-doctor HD-hold
• ILY-I love you IMPT-important LTRS-letters
• MSG-message NBR-numbers OFC-office
• OIC-oh, I see PLS-please PPL-people
• Q-question R-are SHD-should
• SVC-service SK-ending message U-You
• THKS-thanks TMW-tomorrow UR-your
• XXX-this is used to correct a misspelled word

7
How to Place a Relay Call

• When you know you are calling a TTY number, you
  dial 711. This will connect you to the Relay
  Operator
• The OPR will ask you for the number you wish to
  call, with the area code first.
• She or he will then dial the number and tell you
  when the party answers.
• A light flashes to alert non hearing TTY users
  that they are receiving a call

8
How to place a Relay Call

• The OPR will tell you when the party answers, and
  she or he will tell you to begin your
  conversation.
• Sometimes the TTY caller does not answer, but
  they have a TTY answering machine that will take
  messages from the relay OPR.

9
How to Place a Relay Call

• After you have completed the beginning of your
  conversation, you will say, GA to signal to the
  TTY user that it is their turn to type back to
  you.
• The call relays back and forth in this manner,
  until the SK signal is given that the
  conversation is wrapping up.

10
Points to Remember

• Relay calls can be made 24 hours a day, 7 days a
  week.
• There is never a charge to use the FRS (Florida
  Relay System)
• Each state has its own system
• The OPR will type everything that is heard,
  including sneezes, coughs, dogs barking and
  mumbled utterances.
• Sometimes the equipment is referred to as TDD
  (Tele-device for the Deaf) However, TTY is the
  preferred term, as not all users are Deaf.

11
Relay users Rights

• The persons using relay have the right to
  communicate anything that is needed.
• This means anything.
• The OPRs are used to conversations with varied
  content
• The OPR has the responsibility to convey the
  message in the same spirit in which it is given
• In Florida, FRS offers services in English,
  Spanish and Haitian Creole

12
Other Types of Relay Systems

• People who are Deaf, Hard of Hearing or Speech
  Impaired do not need to use a TTY to make a phone
  call.
• There are other relay systems that are accessible
  via the internet.
• IP-relay and ATT relay are often used via the
  internet, rather than a TTY
• The process for receiving an internet relay call
  is exactly the same.

13
Internet Relay systems

• www.sprintrelayonline.comwww.relaycall.com
  WWW.ip-relay.com
• These are only used by the callers who are Deaf,
  Hard of Hearing or Speech Impaired. It is not
  possible to make the call from the internet to a
  TTY.

14
Speaking Protocol for Relay

• When using to the Relay OPR, it is important to
  always speak directly to the person you are
  calling. For example,
• I am calling to remind you about your
  appointment tomorrow
• NOT, tell him I am calling to remind him about
  his appointment tomorrow
• This takes some practice.
• Many people who are Deaf are not fluent in
  English. This is because their first language is
  ASL. ASL uses a completely different syntax, and
  grammatical structure.