In addition to the stereotype of the deaf, the main causes of a false medical diagnosis of this group of patients are identified as the misinterpretation of the deaf cultural specificity and the lack of understanding communication with them (Ubido, Huntington and Warburton, 2002). For later attitudes and communication with deaf people, the quality of prior contact with deaf individuals is important (De Laat et al., 2013). So, a positive experience and a positive attitude of students who are studying for healthcare professionals could contribute to a better understanding and improved communication with deaf patients in their future work. The purpose of the study was to collect data on the attitudes of students of medical schools towards their deaf and hard of hearing peers and their integration. Using the Inclusion of Deaf or Hard of Hearing Students Inventory (Hung 2005), which was translated and adapted to the Croatian language, we collected data on hearing students’ perceived closeness to deaf and hard of hearing peers, the frequency of their prior voluntary contacts with deaf and hard of hearing persons, the perception of classroom atmosphere related to the integration of the deaf into regular schools and does the school integrate deaf and hard of hearing students or not. The study included 328 high school students aged 15.5 to 16.5 years, among them were 270 girls and 58 boys from different medical programs. The findings showed that the perceived closeness with deaf and hard of hearing students is relatively high, meaning that attitudes towards them were positive. Girls have shown a higher perceived closeness compared to boys, but the difference, although statistically significant, was actually very small. No differences were noted depending on whether schools integrated deaf and hard of hearing students or not. The frequency of previous voluntary contacts with deaf and hard of hearing peers within the classroom is related to the perceived closeness with them. Students who have a more positive perception of the classroom atmosphere related to the effects of the integration of the deaf in personal and social life within the class and a more positive perception of the consequences of integration in class activities, showed a higher perceived closeness with deaf and hard of hearing peers, although the differences were very small.

medical school students, deaf and hard of hearing students, health care professional