Copyright 2001
How Much Are You Worth as a HOH Person?
QUESTION: I hear the terms "hearing
impairment," "hearing handicap" and "hearing
disability" used seemingly interchangeably. Why do we have
these terms if they all mean the same thing?-N.
ANSWER: Good
question! Actually, they don't mean the same thing at all, hence
the confusion. The American Academy of Otolaryngology (AAO) carefully
defined each term. I think you'll find these differences most
interesting for they relate to how society values and views our
worth.
Hearing Impairment
is any deviation from "normal" for the worse-whether
in structure or in function. Therefore, any degree of hearing
loss is a hearing impairment. So too are all the other strange
conditions we have that are associated with "damaged ears"
such as tinnitus, hyperacusis, recruitment, less than perfect
discrimination, etc. It covers the whole range of hearing loss
from mild to totally deaf.
Hearing Handicap
is the disadvantage imposed on hard of hearing people by society
such that it affects our efficiency in our daily lives.
Even though we may have hearing losses (hearing
impairment), we do not have to be handicapped if we live
in a society that is sensitive to our needs! Years ago on Martha's
Vineyard there were many people who were deaf. These people would
have been severely handicapped in a "normal" society.
However, a wonderful thing happened. Everyone on the island
learned to sign, so whether you were deaf or hearing you had no
trouble communicating with any one. Thus, the deaf people there
were not handicapped even though they couldn't hear.
Another example-if all television programs
were captioned, then whether we hear well or not doesn't make
any difference-we can all understand the programs. As a result,
we would not be handicapped in this situation.
When society fails to meet our unique needs
as hard of hearing people, we end up handicapped. This handicapping
is not the fault of our hearing losses as such, but from society
not "leveling the playing field" so we can live in society
as equals.
This brings us to the third term, "Hearing
disability." Hearing disability is "an actual or
presumed inability to remain employed at full wages." Hearing
disability only comes about when society fails to meet our needs
and thus handicaps us so it is difficult for us to compete fairly
in a hearing society. In a nutshell, hearing disability is how
society views our "worth."
Do you want to know how much you are worth as a hard of hearing
person in our society? If so, keep reading and I'll show you how
"they" figure it out.
In 1979, the American Academy of Otolaryngology (AAO) came up
with a formula that defines their concept of the degree of disability
we suffer as a result of a hearing loss. Thirty-two of the 50
states now use this formula as the basis for their compensation
awards.
Here is how to determine the amount your hearing loss would likely
affect your ability to earn a "normal" salary in today's
society according to the AAO formula. All you need to determine
your worth is a copy of your audiogram and a calculator.
Step 1. Determine your average hearing loss in decibels
for each ear using these four frequencies-500 Hz, 1,000 Hz, 2,000
Hz and 3,000 Hz. I'll use my hearing loss as an example so you
can see how it is done. Follow along using your own figures.
You'll find the hearing loss for your right ear marked on your
audiogram with red circles and your left ear marked with blue
Xs. (Ignore any other marks such as red triangles, blue squares
or angle brackets like < or >.)
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Add the figures up for each ear and divide by
4 to get the average. (Round your answer to the nearest whole
number.)
65 + 75 + 65 + 60 = 265/4 = 66 average dB loss in right ear.
65 + 75 + 70 + 65 = 275/4 = 69 average dB loss in left ear.
Step 2. Calculate the degree of impairment for each ear.
The assumption is that a hearing handicap doesn't begin until
you have at least a 25 dB loss. The handicap then increases by
1.5% for each dB loss above 25 dB. To determine this, take the
average you calculated in Step 1 and subtract 25 from it. If the
answer is greater than zero, multiply the result by 1.5. Do this
for each ear. (If your loss in both ears is less than or equal
to 25 dB you don't have any hearing handicap according to the
AAO.)
Right ear: 66 25 = 41 x 1.5 = 61.5% handicap
Left ear: 69 25 =44 x 1.5 = 66% handicap.
Step 3. In this step, you apply a 5 to 1 weight favoring
your better ear, then you combine the results to obtain the final
figure. (If your better ear has a hearing loss of 25 dB loss or
less, and your worse ear is greater than 25 dB, simply take the
result of your worse ear and divide it by 6 to get the final answer
[and skip the next paragraph].)
To calculate your hearing disability, take the smaller figure
from Step 2 (your better ear) and multiply it by 5. Add this to
the figure of your worse ear. Add these two numbers together and
divide the result by 6. That is your hearing handicap as a percentage.
Better ear 61.5 x 5 = 307.5
Add together 307.5 + 69 = 376.5
Divide by 6 376.5/6 = 63%
According to this formula, I have a hearing handicap of 63%. This
means that my expected earning capacity would be 63% below
"normal" and this could be the basis for compensation
if I were eligible.
In other words, my value to society is only 37% (100 63
= 37%) when compared to a person with normal hearing. Therefore,
I could expect to only earn (on the average) 37% as much as a
person with normal hearing according to the AAO. Let's say that
the average salary today is $40,000.00. Instead of bringing home
that amount, I could expect to only take home 37% of that, or
$14,800.00.
All too often this is the reality. There are several studies that
show that deaf and hard of hearing people are consistently underemployed
and underpaid.
On top of all this, there are some serious flaws in this formula.
Notice that it fails to take into consideration whether we can
understand what we hear. This is called discrimination. (All of
us with sensorineural hearing losses have discrimination problems
to one degree or other.) We may be able to hear pure tones for
the audiogram, but if we cannot understand speech well (or at
all) because of poor discrimination we are essentially deaf-yet
we could be compensated as though we could hear and understand
at the level our audiograms indicate. Also, if we suffer from
tinnitus or recruitment or hyperacusis-we may not be able to function
well in society-but supposedly we can "hear" so no allowance
is made for these factors either.
If you ever find yourself in the situation where your hearing
disability is being figured out, make sure they take into consideration
not only your hearing handicap as calculated, but also all the
other factors that make up your hearing picture. In the final
analysis, determining your hearing disability is an "administrative
decision" although it is greatly influenced by the results
of this hearing handicap calculation. What this means in practice
is that the person determining your hearing disability has the
discretion to consider any other factors and either increase or
decrease your hearing disability percentage.
So there you have it. Whether you like it or not, and whether
you think it fairly reflects your status in the workplace or not,
that is how "they" calculate your "worth"
to society.
_______________________
Neil Bauman (Connect/Network) was born with a severe hereditary hearing loss. He is a "Hearing Loss Coping Skills" instructor. In addition, he researches, speaks and writes on hearing loss issues. Send your questions to him at neil@hearinglosshelp.com.
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