The ability to communicate with the authorities by text in an emergency is limited to less than 10 percent of the U.S., says Scott Carlton, the creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi Wellness in New York City. Carlton is one of the masterminds behind Deaf 911, an emergency mobile app that gives people who are deaf or hard of hearing a voice when they need it most. Carlton doesn’t have a hearing loss, but his grandmother, with whom he was close, was profoundly deaf.
Managing Hearing Loss in the Time of COVID-19
Frequent, proper handwashing, hand sanitizer use, and not touching your face were the early health and safety directives as the COVID-19 pandemic spread from country to country and then state to state. In the past few weeks, social distancing and face masks became the next tools in helping to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus. Both are particular challenges for those with and without hearing challenges.
The Challenges of Masks With Hearing Loss
During the COVID-19 pandemic, audiologists and other hearing healthcare professionals are concerned about our patients. With social distancing, we are communicating at a distance of six feet which is difficult if not impossible with a loss of hearing.
Data Made Visual
Over the past several years, Hearing Health Foundation (HHF)’s Hearing Restoration Project (HRP) has generated a significant amount of data. Part of the challenge for HRP consortium members, as for many life scientists, comes not only from the amount of data they need to analyze but also the need to examine multi-omic datasets.
#GivingTuesdayNow: Science Doesn't Stop
“Experimental work in my lab has been paused. However, right before the pandemic struck, my lab and I had finished the final round of imaging experiments and collected enormous datasets for review. We are able to work and maintain daily contact and hold weekly virtual lab meetings to keep each other up-to-date on our progress.” Right now, you can help our scientists, like Dr. Apostolides, ensure that momentum is not lost in the quest to better treat and cure devastating conditions like hearing loss and tinnitus. Our health cannot afford for research to be interrupted.
Parenting With Hearing Loss: It Is What It Is!
I was diagnosed in my late 20s, and my boys have lived their entire lives with a mother who hears differently than them. There’s never been a big conversation or explanation, and they’ve never had to adapt to anything new. It is what it is. We’ve had conversations about the genetic risk. My mother, her sisters, my grandmother, and my great aunts all have hearing loss. So my sons are tested once a year to make sure I didn’t pass it on. Day to day, though, it’s our reality, and my boys don’t know an alternative.
My Hearing Aids Got Wet: Now What?
Whether you are new to hearing aids or have worn them for years, one thing nearly all hearing aid wearers know is that these highly advanced technological devices can be damaged by moisture. Here is what to do if your hearing aids get wet.
10 Clues Your Child Has a Hearing Loss
Universal hearing screening for newborns has helped to identify most children with hearing issues quickly and accurately. With simple tests, 80 to 90 percent of hearing loss can be detected, and children can begin early intervention with the best possible outcomes for language development.
Hearing the Passion
For Alex, each new language is a hidden art with its secrets and beauty waiting to be discovered. Alex was in elementary school when he developed an interest in foreign television cartoons, including programs from Italy and Japan. His discovery of their cultures soon evolved into a fascination with their languages.
Support HHF in Your Local HLAA Walk4Hearing
Hearing Health Foundation (HHF) is proud to be a National Alliance Partner in this year’s Hearing Loss Association (HLAA) Walk4Hearing, meaning that you can support hearing loss research while raising awareness of hearing health with your community.