SWC March 2008 Newsletter

Steve is a young man from England whose blog I recently came across and was quite fascinated by the information and resources he provides for locals. I was also quite fascinated by the fact that although we are on different sides of the Atlantic, the stigma is still the same and the hearing aid business mimics the same problems everywhere. If you don't have insurance and/or the finances for private audiologists, you're stuck. Although England has its health-care system, Steve brings to light some of the issues facing the British individual with hearing loss.

Pearl: Steve, tell us where you are from and what you do?

Steve: I live in the U.K., in a small town near Oxford. I'm a Software Engineer and I currently build and maintain a large website for Taylor and Francis (an academic publisher). Before that I worked for Siemens Molecular Imaging.

Pearl: What type of hearing loss do you have? And do you wear hearing aids?

Steve: I've had sensorineural losses in both ears since the age of five. It has been getting gradually worse and I now have a moderate to severe loss in both ears. I'm currently wearing a pair of Starkey Destinys ITCs, which I have had for about a year.

Pearl: In England you have socialized medicine. How does this affect people with hearing loss obtaining hearing aids, cochlear implants and services?

Steve: Yeah, we have the National Health Service (NHS). There are some pretty shocking waiting times for NHS hearing aids. It's not uncommon for people to have to wait 12 to 18 months to get fitted. The Government has stated that this needs to improve -- whether it does or not is another story! Cochlear implants are also available free from the NHS but I'm not sure of the waiting times for those.

Pearl: What in your opinion is lacking for people with hearing loss in England?

Steve: Clear, unbiased information! And that is why I started my blog. Too often hearing-aid vendors act like car salesmen, trying to make the quick sale of the highest priced hearing aid. I think reasonably priced hearing aids are also lacking. I'd like to see what markup vendors make on a sale. I'm convinced they are making a killing on each sale.

Pearl: You started a website/blog focused on hearing loss and services. Are you receiving a good response? Are you linked to British local agencies and services?

Steve: I have received a great response with the blog. I've got to know a good number of other bloggers and people in the deaf and HoH communities and it has been fantastic. I have also learnt a lot myself about my own hearing loss since starting the site. I am not affiliated with any companies or organisations. One thing I would like to do this year is to contact some charities and offer to help promote them. There a lot of hard-working charities and individuals out there who aren't receiving the attention they deserve.

Pearl: Is it easy to find a movie theatre with closed captioning?

Steve: More and more cinemas are offer screenings with subtitles - so, yeah, I think it is pretty easy to find captioned films.

Pearl: Is there a great divide between the Deaf and people with hearing loss in England as there is here in the U.S.?

Steve: I don't really know, to be honest. I guess, though, there is a world of difference between being hard of hearing and being completely deaf.

Pearl: What are the most difficult concerns for the person with hearing loss?

Steve: For many people I think the biggest concern is coming to terms with their hearing loss. So many people just ignore it and do nothing about it. They deny the problem is there and cause themselves so many problems by doing so. I can understand why people would do that. There is still a big stigma about hearing loss and many people still view the deaf and HoH as being "lesser" than people with normal hearing. If only hearing aids could be as socially acceptable, as cheap and as readily available as reading glasses!

Pearl: Steve, thanks for taking the time to be interviewed. You can visit Steve's site at www.deafness-and-hearingaids.net