Help for Hearing Impairment

rosieben

ok, thanks, I was thinking I'd be able to browse it

Pitlanepiglet

Can I just say thank you for this fantastic thread, I'm only up to page 12 but I'm getting a much better idea of the issues that MiL is facing. It also now occurs to me that she probably struggles to put her hearing aid in as she can't lift her arms properly.

SS have been out to asses her for care where she is and have given her 3 visits a week by a carer. It makes me cross now that this is clearly not sufficient for her (apart from the fact that she can't lift a saucepan so can't cook!). OH's brother lives nearest her at the mo but has been blooming useless and has left her to deal with things on her own which she can't do as she struggles to hear but won't admit to it.

I'm really glad we're going to have her close to us so that we can get her the care that she needs, it sounds like we need to get SS sorted and get her some audiology support and a carer who is able to put her aids in during the morning and take them out at night.

MiL's real problem is hearing people in a group environment, I'm sure I'll find info as I go through the thread but she's going into a residential environment where I think this is going to be an issue for her. Is anyone able to suggest what works for them in this situation?

Hear-Hear

Pitlanepiglet,

If MiL has only one hearing aid but a bilateral (both ears) hearing loss, she's at a massive disadvantage to start with. Sadly, the NHS in the past often offered only a single aid, when two were actually needed. For the most part, single aids for bilateral hearing losses end up in a drawer! You need to arrange for a full re-assessment of her hearing, especially if she has not been tested in the last two years. Again, some NHS areas do not recall to testing. It's up to the patient to request an appointment. Current NHS aids (since last Summer) are bluetooth-enabled, so a little gizmo can stream the radio output directly to the hearing aids. Fantastic stuff - it really works well for audio inputs. Any other questions, feel free to ask. IF Mil is going into a Residential Home, there will be lots of background noise and babble, and probably lots of social activity too. Two hearing aids really are essential.


Rosieben

The Siemens Prisma range is obsolete. The NHS stopped issuing them in 2008, as the technology even then was 8 years old. Prisma was replaced by the Siemens Reflex range a few years ago, and even that range has since been replaced by the Siemens Impact range. You may be in an area where your audiology dept doesn't routinely re-test at 12-monthly or 24-monthly intervals, since I'm sure you would have learned something about the product developments since the Prisma's became redundant. You need to ask for re-test and upgrading. Do it quickly.


Mrs Arcanum

The best source of general accessories, such as BTE shoes etc, is IMHO Connevans. Do a google for them. (I have no financial connection with them).


Errata,

The Catalogue is indeed an internal document, as you rightly suggest. There is no need for the NHS to release it for consumer use, as NHS patients generally are not offered a choice or selection from the Catalogue. If there is any specific information needed from it, feel free to post on here, or one can ask one's NHS audiologist directly.

rosieben

Thanks for that Hear Hear, I had a feeling she was fobbing me off and I'm so grateful you've clarified it; I'll definitely be asking for an upgrade.

eta - forgot to say, our audiology dept has never called me back for a re-test, I've always initiated the re-test because of some kind of problem or other.

Pitlanepiglet

Thank you so much for your help Hear-Hear, I will ring our Care Direct service on monday and start the social services involvement and will then book her a new patient appointment at her new GP's for when she moves. I suspect her existing "solution" was provided on the cheap as she doesn't argue and say how she feels and nobody has been helping her.

She is going into a form of resi care and when we went to visit this week she found it very difficult to follow a conversation with all the background noise. It's bad enough in our home environment.

A bluetooth solution sounds fantastic although she may struggle with something high tech. I suspect I'll be back with more queries fairly soon. I'm used to providing care for my partially disabled father but his hearing is pretty good as was my grandmother's so it's all a huge learning curve for me. OH is losing his hearing as well (probably genetic and too many years of motorsport!) so I suspect this may become a more familiar subject for me.

Thanks so much, we're conscious that at nearly 91 MiL is to some extent on borrowed time and I'd really like her to able to enjoy what she has and at the moment her lack of hearing is really spoiling her quality of life.

sunnyone

Pitlanepiglet wrote: »

Thank you so much for your help Hear-Hear, I will ring our Care Direct service on monday and start the social services involvement and will then book her a new patient appointment at her new GP's for when she moves. I suspect her existing "solution" was provided on the cheap as she doesn't argue and say how she feels and nobody has been helping her.

She is going into a form of resi care and when we went to visit this week she found it very difficult to follow a conversation with all the background noise. It's bad enough in our home environment.

A bluetooth solution sounds fantastic although she may struggle with something high tech. I suspect I'll be back with more queries fairly soon. I'm used to providing care for my partially disabled father but his hearing is pretty good as was my grandmother's so it's all a huge learning curve for me. OH is losing his hearing as well (probably genetic and too many years of motorsport!) so I suspect this may become a more familiar subject for me.

Thanks so much, we're conscious that at nearly 91 MiL is to some extent on borrowed time and I'd really like her to able to enjoy what she has and at the moment her lack of hearing is really spoiling her quality of life.

I personally think that this thread should be a sticky piglet, it has so much information for the hearing impaired it should highlighted.

Pitlanepiglet

I'm very grateful Sunnyone for you pointing me in this direction.

sunnyone

Pitlanepiglet wrote: »

I'm very grateful Sunnyone for you pointing me in this direction.

Your more than welcome, if it helps you and your MIL to give her a better life in her twilight years I have done a good turn and plenty of people have dont the same for me.

Savvy_Sue

Pitlanepiglet wrote: »

MiL's real problem is hearing people in a group environment, I'm sure I'll find info as I go through the thread but she's going into a residential environment where I think this is going to be an issue for her. Is anyone able to suggest what works for them in this situation?

Sadly the answer to 'what helps in a group environment?' is 'precious little', but two hearing aids should help, and they should also have a directional setting for what's in front rather than picking up surround sound: if whoever helps put her aids in was trained to change it to that setting it could be a good start.

Next would be lipreading, but finding a class and getting MIL to it may be a problem. However I'd strongly recommend that for your DH! There's a link to finding a class here.

If MIL will wear a badge that may help a teensy tiny bit in encouraging people to speak up and not mutter. There are various kinds available, my mother favours a rather twee one with a picture of a bear on it which says "I'm hard of hearing, please bear with me" but there are others.

I do have a Sonido which I've used occasionally when out in restaurants with the family, and it was very useful when I was stuck in the back of the car with my deaf ear on the inside. It is very easy to use, and the loop bit works well with the T-setting on my hearing aid, BUT if she can't easily change her settings that may be a problem.

BTW, if MIL bought the aid privately, then the NHS would start again with assessment etc.

Hear-Hear

Hi Savvy_Sue

You are absolutely right (you usually are) about the need for Directional Microphones. Directional Microphones in NHS-supplied aids only have the basics, but you'll be pleased to know that these are now standard on the latest NHS hearing aids. Current NHS hearing aids now automatically adapt the directionality in the presence of background noise. So there's no need for anyone to have to change the settings.

The latest hearing aids in the private sector will react to noise faster, with greater selectivity (focussing on speech sounds rather than other intermittent sounds), with greater sensitivity (needs less noise to trigger the directionality), and better transition (a smoother switch between 'omni' and 'directional' modes. All in all, supremely smooth and comfortable. And they really can help enormously in group environments, to an extent that simply wasn't possible even a couple of years ago.