Hearing Loss 101

1
Hearing Loss 101
Brian Ingram, Workforce Systems and Alice
Pakhtigian, WROCC_at_WOU
2
Deaf/Hard of Hearing Accessibility Project

• Purpose
• To give the counselors information, resources and
  technical assistance while working with deaf/hard
  of hearing clients.

3
Postsecondary Education Programs Network
www.pepnet.org
Click on Resource Center for PEPNet products
4
Training Agenda

• Overview of Hearing Loss
• Types of Hearing Loss
• Causes of Hearing Loss
• Characteristics of Deaf and Hard of Hearing
  Individuals
• Communication Strategies
• Communication Access
• Resources

5

• Overview of Hearing Loss

6
Overview of Hearing Loss

• Deaf
• Sound is not of great consequence for ordinary
  life purposes.
• Hard of Hearing
• Hearing is limited, but may be amplified for
  access to some ordinary life experiences.
• Hearing Impaired
• A commonly used term considered offensive by many
  deaf and hard of hearing individuals.

7
Overview of Hearing Loss

• 10 of all Americans have a hearing loss
• Pre postlingual
• Cultural
• Sign Language users
• Oral
• Late Deafened
• Hard of Hearing
• Family make up
• Effects on language

8
Overview of Hearing Loss

• Populations

• Hard of Hearing (95)

• Late Deafened (4)

• Culturally Deaf (1)

9
Types of Hearing Loss
10
Anatomy of the Ear
11
Hard of Hearing Individuals
12
CausesIllness, Infection Damage

• Measles
• Mumps
• Rubella
• Meningitis
• Otitis Media
• Common Cold
• Ear Wax Buildup
• Tinnitus (Ringing/buzzing in ear due to damage to
  cochlear hair cells)

13
CausesOtotoxic Medication

• 200 drugs now on market are ototoxic
• Anesthetics, cardiac medications, Mood altering
  drugs, some vapors and solvents and
  Glucocorticosteroids (cortisone, steroids)
• Can cause permanent structural damage to inner
  ear
• Can cause temporary structural damage to inner
  ear
• Aspirin
• Quinine
• Loop diuretics (Lasix)

14
CausesNoise Exposure

• Loud sounds increase adrenaline
• Adrenaline rush feels good
• Consciously or unconsciously, we seek more
  adrenaline through loud sounds

15
At present exposure limits, one in four people
will develop a permanent hearing loss as a result
of their occupational exposure to noise hazards.
Data courtesy of the National Institute of
Occupational Health and Safety
16
Causes Presbycusis (Age Related)

• Progressive sensorineural loss
• High frequencies first
• 55 to 65 high frequencies in the speech range
  begin to be affected

17
Hard of Hearing Individuals
1. Involves both ears
80
2. Is permanent
3. Allows benefit from hearing aids
18
Characteristics Hard of Hearing Individuals

• No separate culture
• Want to use residual hearing
• Hearing loss mild to profound
• English is first language
• Fewer than 5 use sign language
• Six million use hearing aids
• Use technology

19
Characteristics Hard Of Hearing Individuals

• Probably come from mainstream setting
• View hearing loss as stigma
• May hide hearing loss
• Appear to be doing just fine
• May not know about VR resources

20
Characteristics Deaf Individuals

• Have a separate culture
• May or may not want to use residual
  hearing
• Hearing loss mild to profound
• English may or may not be first language
• Most use sign language
• Some use hearing aids
• Few use technology

21
Characteristics Deaf Individuals

• May or may not come from mainstream setting
• Are not likely to view deafness as stigma
• Do not hide hearing loss
• Are often isolated in the hearing world
• May not know about VR resources

22
Differences Between Deaf and Hard of Hearing
Individuals
23
Myths About Hearing Loss

• Everyone can speechread
• Hearing aids are the solution
• Speechreading gives 100 understanding
• Everyone knows sign language
• You can hear when you want to

24
Communication Strategies
Its Always About Communication Issues
25
Communication

• Dont worry-You arent expected to know
  everything
• Do be sensitive to differences
• Be courteous
• Use humor and idioms cautiously

26
Communication

• Get the persons attention
• Hard of hearing A wave, speaking
• Deaf - A wave, a tap on the shoulder, a nod
• Effective communication
• Hard of hearing Speech reading means having to
  see your face and mouth
• Deaf If you dont have eye contact, you dont
  have communication

27
Communication - Speech Reading

• Incorporates context, body language, and mouth
  movement with hearing
• Only 33 of English phonemes are visible on the
  lips
• Is more difficult if you overenunciate
• Does not equal intelligence
• Not always effective (so, repeat, rephrase)
• Some pitches may be more difficult to hear (so,
  repeat, rephrase)
• A nod does not always indicate understanding

28
Communication - Act

• Use natural gestures
• Point
• Use facial expressions body
• language
• Dont yell
• Pantomime
• Dont worry about saying something bad in sign
• Be yourself!

29
Communication - Write

• For short-term communication try
• Pencil and paper
• Computer
• Diagrams and illustrations
• Getting the message across is more important than
  the medium used

Write, draw, or diagram!
30
What if communication breaks down?

• Frustration
• Stay Calm
• Remedy problems
• Noisy room
• Poor lighting
• Etiquette
• Hearing aids squealing
• Distracting noises
• Someone calls your name or the phone rings

• Special events or busy times
• Schedule an interpreter
• Learn Survival Signs
• Have ALDs available

31
Remember

• Communication is a two way street.
• Just by going that extra bit, you have opened up
  the communication highway.
• Deaf and Hard of Hearing individuals are used to
  accommodating us.

32
Communication Access
33
Hearing Aids

• Microphone, amplifier, receiver
• Fitted earmold
• Battery
• Telecoil
• Styles
• in the ear
• behind the ear
• in the canal
• completely in the canal
• Circuitry linear, programmable, digital

34
Cochlear Implants

• Option when hearing aids no longer help
• Surgically implanted
• electronic device
• Sends sound messages
• directly to auditory nerve
• Uses external microphone, speech
• processor, transmitting coil, internal
• receiver

35
Assistive Listening Devices

• Binoculars for the ears
• Increase loudness of specific sounds
• Minimize background noise
• Reduce the effect of distance
• Help override poor acoustics

36
CART Computer-Aided Realtime Transcription

• Speakers words displayed on screen or laptop
  monitor
• Provides verbatim readout
• Ideal for classroom, courtroom, meetings
• Edited printout or disk available

37
Acoustics

• Can interfere with speech understanding
• Currently no Federal standards
• Technical help available to improve
• Consideration as ADA accommodation

38
Interpreters

• Work between two languages cultures
• Follow a Code of Ethics
• Maintain confidentiality
• Have varying degrees of skill
• Interpret for everyone
• May have certification

39
Working With Interpreters

• Before meeting/interaction
• Give interpreter handouts, vocabulary
• Mechanics
• Maintain eye contact while talking
• Avoid saying tell her
• Talk, then show
• One person talking at a time
• No talking to the blackboard!
• During meeting
• Cannot participate in meeting
• Need breaks to reduce fatigue

40
How do you pay?

• Question Do we have to provide
• interpreting for our clients?
• Answer YES, you do.
• Strategies
• Partnering- Resource agreement with Community
  College and Vocational Rehabilitation
• Budgeting on site.

41
Notetakers

• Can be used by both Deaf and Hard of Hearing
  individuals.
• Provide a necessary service for realtime
  communication access in meetings, trainings, or
  classroom settings.
• Allow more complete participation.

42
Technical Assistance

• Please contact
• Alice Pakhtigian, 503-838-8837
• email pakhtiga_at_wou.edu
• Brian Ingram, 503-772-2341
• email bingram_at_worksystems.org
• Please fill out the Technical Assistance
  Evaluation form and give it to your Navigator to
  send to Brian. Thank you. We need the feedback
  to determine what needs improving.

43

• Questions??

44
Resources

• Hearing Loss Association of America (formerly
  known as Self Help for Hard of Hearing People,
  Inc)
• http//www.hearingloss.org
• National Association of the Deaf
• http//www.nad.org
• Association of Late Deafened Adults
• http//www.alda.org
• PEPNet
• http//www.pepnet.org
• Western Region Outreach Center and Consortia
• http//www.wou.edu/wrocc

45
Contact Information

• Brian Ingram
• Region 2 Navigator
• Worksystems, Inc
• 711 SW Adler Street, Suite 200
• Portland, OR 97205
• Email bingram_at_worksystems.org
• Phone [phone]
• Website www.worksystems.org

46
Contact Information

• Alice Pakhtigian, Special Projects Coordinator
• WROCC Outreach Site at
• Western Oregon University
• 345 N. Monmouth Avenue
• Monmouth, Oregon 97361
• (503) 838 8837 v/tty
• pakhtiga_at_wou.edu
• http//www.wou.edu/wrocc