The wonderful gift of sound-II

The first step in this direction is to ensure that the hearing-impaired person undergoes a thorough evaluation by an audiologist. Who else can take better responsibility for this but the parents? The audiologist may want complete background information. Who else in the family has/ had hearing loss? Did the hearing problem begin suddenly or is it gradual? Is the hearing loss confined to one ear or has it spread to both ears, equally/ differentially? Specific answers to these questions may provide valuable information that could help in identifying the cause of the problem.

Once the nature of the problem points to the rehabilitation route, a programme consisting of the use of amplification devices, auditory training, speech therapy, etc can be put in place. The family can be of great help at this stage in implementing the programme.

Auditory training, for example, is simply a systematic approach to help the hearing-impaired in using his/ her residual hearing to the best advantage. Here, the family members could help in making the person aware of the presence of sound in his/ her environment. They must be taught to attach meaning to these sounds and to differentiate between sounds that are very different and those that are rather similar. With training, the hearing-impaired may learn to use cues that they may have ignored otherwise. A parent observed that when the doorbell rang, their pet dog used to rush to the door. Bhasker followed. Soon, little Bhasker learned to answer the doorbell on his own.

As with hearing, with speech also the family could serve as a source of information at the time of initial evaluation, especially when hearing impairment is identified in a child. The family can and must receive training from a qualified person to teach speech and language at home which provides a natural environment for the child. Also the parents can monitor the progress of the child. Giri’s mother said he knew ‘chappati’ if it was in front of him and not otherwise. Obviously more work was required.

Kiran received speech therapy as a four year old and stopped abruptly. Her father wanted to know if she could be trained to speak when she was 17 years old as she was getting married. They had to be told that speech cannot be taught overnight to the hearing-impaired. So it’s important for the family to understand the significance of timing with regard to the treatment.

Sometimes a change in the attitude or perception of the parents is also required to bring about a significant change in the lives of the hearing impaired. Hasina, for instance, could knit. She could also draw portraits on the spot. But neither of the skills fetched her any returns. “There is no need for Hasina to earn any money,” was her father’s argument. Another parent of a hearing-impaired daughter took exception to his son-in-law’s decision to move his wife and child out of the parents’ house. In this case, the father had to learn to let go.

The family must also take care not to act on the advice of the unqualified. Lastly, right action at the right time should be the motto. One teenager blamed his parents for his hearing loss which had come to stay. The profuse ear discharge had gone untreated in his childhood, a lost opportunity for prevention