on the job with hearing loss the invisible disability
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On The Job With Hearing Loss The Invisible Disability. Becky Morris, President, Beyond Hearing Aids, Inc. Definitions of the Population. - PowerPoint PPT PresentationTRANSCRIPT
On The Job With Hearing LossThe Invisible Disability
Becky Morris, President, Beyond Hearing Aids, Inc.
Definitions of the Population
• Hearing Loss identifies someone with any type of hearing impairment. A general term to encompass anyone with a hearing loss, regardless of the severity of the loss.
• Hard of Hearing – individuals who have varying degrees of hearing loss who are using their residual hearing to communicate. Hearing aids and assistive technology are helpful.
Definitions of the Population
• Late-Deafened – individuals who are unable to use residual hearing to understand speech. Hearing aids and assistive devices do not provide benefit. Most often do not know sign language and use visual cues to communicate.
• Deaf – individuals who have profound hearing loss who are prelingually/culturally deaf and use American Sign Language (ASL) to communicate.
Who Are We Talking About ?
28 Million People with Hearing Loss
Hard of Hearing94.8%
Late Deafened3.8%
Deaf1.4%
Fact or Myth ?
• Hearing loss is an invisible disability.
• People who are Deaf or severely hard of hearing are less intelligent.
• Hearing aids correct hearing like glasses correct vision.
• Hearing loss mainly affects older people.
• You can hide your hearing loss.
Fact or Myth ?
• The accommodation for hearing loss is an interpreter.
• The person with the hearing loss will know what accommodations they will need.
• I will know what an employee needs to help them on the job.
• A hearing aid fixes all communication needs.
Statistics From SHHH
• ___________________Americans have hearing loss.
Statistics From SHHH
• One in every ten (28 million) people have hearing loss.
• As baby boomers reach retirement age starting in 2010, this number is expected to nearly double by 2030.
• While hearing loss increases with age (1 in 3 over age 65) most hearing losses develop over a period of __________.
Statistics From SHHH
• One in every ten (28 million) people have hearing loss.
• Nearly 38 million Baby Boomers between 40-59 will begin to face the challenges of hearing loss.
• While hearing loss increases with age (1 in 3 over age 65) most hearing losses develop over a period of 25-30 years.
Statistics From SHHH
• Only 5% of hearing loss in adults can be improved through medical or surgical treatment.(12,500 people have Cochlear Implants)
• While 95% of people with hearing loss could be successfully treated with hearing aids, only 22% (6.35 million individuals) currently use them.
Why People Don’t Wear Hearing Aids
• The average time it takes a person to accept and deal with a hearing loss is .
Why People Don’t Wear Hearing Aids
• The average time it takes a person to accept and deal with a hearing loss is 7 years.
• The average cost of two hearing aids is about $ .
Why People Don’t Wear Hearing Aids
• The average time it takes a person to accept and deal with a hearing loss is 7 years.
• The average cost of two hearing aids is about $3000. Hearing aids are not covered by most insurance companies.
How Hearing Loss Can Affect Job Performance
• Difficult to use the telephone
• Difficult to understanding work orders
• Unable to respond to emergency sounds
• Very difficult to hear when background noise is present
The Invisible Disability
How Hearing Loss Can Affect Job Performance
• Social implications that affect morale
• Reluctance to participate in meetings
• May appear ‘aloof’ or ‘stand-offish’
• Perceptions affect performance as self confidence erodes
The Invisible Disability
Lost Potential
People with hearing loss may not advance as quickly as others because of performance and perceptions.
Many people who start experiencing difficulties related to their hearing loss on the job will not seek advancement (because they can’t participate in training) or retire early.
There are better ways to accommodate than this !
A less than supportive work environment impedes the accommodation process and can actually become one of the identified challenges to overcome!
A T T I T U D E
Successful Accommodation Steps
Identify the communication issues in each of the job functions.
List where breakdowns occur.
Gather the technical information.
Seek help in accommodations.
Knowing when the phone rings
AM100AMPX or AMPXB
Knowing when someone is at the door
Silent Call Good Vibrations receiver and Door/Window Access
Hearing on the phone
HATIS Headsets
M12 amplifier
Hearing on the phone
HA40
PA25
XL30, XL40, XL50
ClearSounds
Hearing on the phone
CapTel
Uniphone 1140
Hearing on the phone
Fax machine Email
Alerting to the Fire Alarm
Silent Call Good Vibrations and Fire Alarm Transmitter
Knowing when someone has entered the office/store
Silent Call Door/Window Access and Transmatter Mat
Hearing Protection Headsets
Bilsom Headset
Hearing on a Cell phone
T-Mobile SidekickHATIS
Alternative to the Overhead Page
Private Page System
Stethoscopes
Cardionics Escopes
Common Sense Options
• Always use an agenda for meetings
• Use meeting rules such as one person speaks at a time (use a moderator)
• Get person’s attention and move to a quieter area
• Have at least one accessible telephone
Communication Options
• Sign language interpreter
• CART – Computer Assisted Real Time Captioning
• Assistive Listening Systems for many levels of hearing loss
CART
One-on-One for Small Meeting
Projected for Larger Meetings
Using an Interpreter in a Meeting
How ALDs Work
SPEECH SPEECH SPEECHSPEECH
SPEECH
SPEECH
Microphone
Transmitter Receiver
SPEECH
Courtesy of Samuel R. Atcherson, Ph.D.
FM System
Photos courtesy of Listen
Transmitter/mic
Receiver w/option
FM Listening OptionsNo Hearing Aids or In-the-Ear Hearing Aids
Headphones
Earphone
Photos courtesy of Listen, Phonic Ear
Dual Earbud
In-the-Ear Aid
FM Listening Options Hearing Aids/CI Speech Processors
w/telecoils
Neckloop
Silhouette
Behind-the-Ear Aid w/telecoil
Ear Level Speech Processor w/telecoil
Photos courtesy of Beltone, Cochlear Corp, Listen, HATIS
FM Microphone Options• Transmitters
– Lapel microphone– Conference microphone
• Receivers– Environmental microphone/’Smart
mic’– Conference microphone on receiver
Photos courtesy of Comtek, CentrumSound
www.BeyondHearingAids.com
Becky Morris, President
Beyond Hearing Aids, Inc.
463 Erlanger Rd. Suite 1
Erlanger, KY 41018
800-838-1649 v/tty