One out of every 11 Americans suffers some type of hearing impairment, ranging from a mild loss of hearing to profound deafness. Unfortunately, the ability to perceive sound clearly and accurately is not just a useful skill. It is essential for the day-to-day communication on which modern life is built. It is hardly surprising then, that individuals who lose that ability often find their lives completely changed. They become frustrated and depressed. They feel isolated. Their lifestyles and personal relationships change dramatically.

This brings us to a discussion of assistive technologies--specialized technologies that help hearing impaired people acquire greater confidence in their communication skills AND expand their abilities to develop and maintain independent lifestyles.

What is an Assistive Listening Device?

Like a hearing aid, and assistive listening device makes sound louder. Typically, a hearing aid makes all sounds in the environment louder. An assistive listening device can increase the loudness of a desired sound such as TV, a radio, public speaker, or someone talking in a noisy place without increasing the loudness of background noises. Also, assistive devices are not just for people who wear hearing aids, although many people who wear hearing aids will receive even more benefit with the use of both. Other people who do not wear hearing aids but have some degree of hearing loss, may just need a little “assistance”.

There are many types of devices available:

Personal Listening Systems: These are designed to carry sound from the speaker (or other source such as the TV) directly to the listener without interference from background noise. One of my favorite uses for these is one-on-one conversations in a car, (think motorhome) where the speaker can speak into a microphone and the listener can pick up the speech with minimal background noise.

Telephone Amplifying Devices: There are also telephone amplifying devices, some of which work with a special telephone coil built into a hearing aid, or specially designed telephones which provides different levels of amplification for different types and degrees of hearing loss. Many of these telephones also have large buttons for the visually impaired and some even give a voice feedback for each number dialed to avoid mistakes. It is important to consult your audiologist as some of these telephones provide more amplification than is needed for most listeners.

TV Listening Systems: These are designed for listening to TV, radio, or stereo without interference from surrounding noise or the need to use very high volume (these make spouses very happy). Models are available for use with or without hearing aids.

And of course, there are also devices that can be used in churches, auditoriums, theatres and other public places which is a whole different discussion.

If you are interested in learning more about assistive listening devices for personal use, you should seek the help of an audiologist who has expertise in working with this technology to determine which device is best for you. Here at Peninsula Hearing Services, we have a variety of devices for you to see and try and can answer any questions you may have as to which would provide the greatest benefit. Of course a good hearing evaluation by an audiologist is going to provide the best information on which to base recommendations.

Karen M. Martin, Au.D.

Audiologist

Peninsula Hearing Services, Inc

167 Warehouse Ave. Ste B

Soldotna, AK 99669

262-3224