Hearing Aid for Cheap!

Yes. I haven’t been updating my blog. But apparently, people still read my blog, so here goes.

I was googling for some ideas to embark on a monumental project for the betterment of the hearing impaired community in Malaysia (drama, exaggeration at my finest); and that search ended up on lelong.com.my (a local version of ebay). So guess what I saw. Hearing aid selling for RM29.64… including free shipping!

11 sold!!!

I found it amusing and sad at the same time. It reminded me of the time when I was in Melbourne, when my husband showed me a text in a group chat. One of the group members in Malaysia was asking for one of their mates in Melbourne to buy a hearing aid on ebay for his relative. Obviously I have educated my husband well. He consulted me as soon as he saw that text. I put on my audiologist hat and answered in the most diplomatic way possible. It was something along the line of,

“Hearing aid is not something that you can buy off the rack. For vision, you wear glasses/spectacles to see. And to get that glasses/specs, you see an optometrist to be prescribed with the right glasses/specs, otherwise you will just damage your vision further! Likewise with hearing, same concept applies. You just don’t get a hearing aid from any Tom, Dick or Harry; you see an audiologist so that you get the right prescription for your hearing aids. An audiologist is a professional that can test your hearing and advise what is the best way to manage the hearing loss (if that is the case). I understand why people would consider getting them off ebay because hearing aids can be really expensive. But if it’s not fitted properly, you might just worsen your hearing and consequently make that user not want to wear hearing aids at all! In fact, he/she would feel better off without any aid, when all it needed was the right fitting. Please do consult an audiologist before making that purchase… you can see them at major hospitals in Malaysia or any hearing clinics/hearing aid centres.”

There was quite a long pause before anybody responded. Which means either they are digesting the information (yay!), or they couldn’t care less to read the whole thing. But then somebody suggested a friend who is in fact, an audiologist, so that was good. But the person who initiated the text said he’s just asking, he’ll let his relative know. Hopefully after all these years, his relative did get the right help!

So.If you’re an audiologist reading this. Do YOU find it disturbing that about a few units of these cheap aids have been sold? Share me your thoughts ☺ And if you’re on the web prowling for hearing aids, would you still buy a cheap hearing aid off the rack/ebay without consulting a professional? Do let me know as well! Obviously there’s something that is making you not convinced to seek an audiologist’s help…

Remarks from Hearing Aid Clients

Throughout my working experience doing trial hearing aids and fitting them, I've heard remarks that really amused (and some, still amuses) me. So now I decided, whenever I hear an interesting statement, I will put it up in this post.

Was trying on different range of hearing aids. As I revealed the price, the client was shocked to hear the figure. Although he admits the benefit, he left the clinic with a remark, "If I lived a different life, I would get the more expensive hearing aid". I always, always, always hate it when cost is the barrier to a better quality of life :(

Client came in, very motivated to wear hearing aid. When he first tried it, he can really feel the benefit that he exclaimed, "I feel like Superman! Fantastic!" Seriously, I've never had that enthusiastic of a client before, so his feedback really made me happy that I was able to help him.

An elderly man came for hearing aid fitting. He has a prosthetic leg made in Denmark. In the clinic, he chose a hearing aid from Denmark as well. Following fitting, I cleverly said to him, "So you're half Danish now" The joke brought laughter from the client and his son. :D Not exactly client's remark, but still, the theme is: amusing! (got the idea from my colleague, hehe)

More remarks to come!

A Hearing System in Your Mouth?!

Can't believe what you're seeing? Believe it.

SoundBite, the latest innovation of a hearing device. See below article to find out more. The things people come up with. I wonder how comfortable it is to wear. Because whenever you have something on your teeth, it's never comfortable~ for me that is. I hated my dentist visits with a passion!

And the device is using bone conduction method. So will the teeth vibrate when the microphone picks up the sound? I seriously could not imagine!

SoundBite In-the-Mouth Hearing System Is FDA Cleared for Single-Sided Deafness | February 3, 2011 | The Insider | The Hearing Review | Hearing Review Products

Laugh-A-Minute

Something light for a stressful week.
A man feared his wife wasn't hearing as well as she used to and he thought she might need a hearing aid.

Not quite sure how to approach her, he called the family Doctor to discuss the problem.

The Doctor told him there is a simple informal test the husband could perform to give the doctor a better idea about her hearing loss.

"Here's what you do," said the Doctor, "stand about 15 metres away from her, and in a normal conversational speaking tone see if she hears you. If not, go to 10 metres away, then 7 metres , and so on until you get a response."

That evening, the wife is in the kitchen cooking dinner, and he was in the den. He stood about 15 metres away, and in a normal tone he asks, 'Honey, what's for dinner?"

No response.

So the husband moves closer to the kitchen, about 10 metres away from his wife and repeats, "Honey, what's for dinner?"

Still no response. Next he moves into the dining room where he is about 7 metres from his wife and asks, "Honey, what's for dinner?"

Again he gets no response. So, he walks up to the kitchen door, about 3 metres away.
"Honey, what's for dinner?" He hears nothing.

So he walks right up behind her. "Honey, what's for dinner?"

(Wait for it....)

"Ahmed, for the fifth blooming time, CHICKEN!"

:D

thanks to EBI Lockhat of South African National Halaal Authority

Pekak?

taken from the Malay Mail 15th December 2010

RM1k fine for threatening SMS

KUALA LUMPUR: All it took was an SMS to turn two best friends into enemies.
A despatch rider was fined RM1,000 by the Kuala Lumpur magistrate's court here this morning for sending a threatening SMS to his former best friend.
Magistrate Zulkipli Abdullah said Mohd Rizal Ahmad Zailan, 30, faces a one-month jail term in default of payment.
Mohd Rizal, better known as "Pekak"(deaf) to his friends as he uses a hearing aid, pleaded guilty to the charge of committing criminal intimidation against Mohd Khairul Shafri Abdul Aziz, 26.
On April 16, 2008, Mohd Khairul had sought compensation from Mohd Rizal, claiming the latter had stolen a handphone belonging to Mohd Khairul's sibling.
Mohd Rizal had refused to pay. On April 28, 2008, Mohd Rizal sent a threatening SMS to Mohd Khairul saying: "Don't be arrogant. You just watch, I will kill you... I will come quietly."
Mohd Rizal asked for a lighter sentence as his wife is five-months pregnant and he also has a one-year-old child.

I put up this article because of the labeling. It is really so easy but terrible for people to label people with disabilities. These kind of people should be thankful that God blesses them with a fully normally functional body. Not everyone is as lucky as them, but for them to label people, it really makes me mad! I applaud Mohd Rizal for embracing his deafness and wearing a hearing aid (but not his crime!!!). It means he wants to be better and improve his quality of life. Not everyone is brave to do so. Hearing has always been taken for granted and it really should stop now!

For better hearing, always!

Is Hearing Aid only for the Privileged?

Would anyone care to disagree?

Of course you would if you are from countries who have really good hearing services such as Australia whose citizens get hearing aids for free (seriously, lucky Australians).

I've seen or heard stories of patients who really struggled to buy just one hearing aid due to financial constraint. And then I've heard one case where the person lost his RM13,000 (or something around that amount) hearing aid, and bought another one of about the same amount. Imagine that. That particular amount of money in combination could have bought 14 digital hearing aids for different people!

And sometimes, the people with the money don't even want to spend on improving communication. As my fellow Audiologist, PM quoted (something similar to this line), "I would spend thousands of money so that I can travel overseas and show off to other people of places I've been, but I would not spend the same amount of money on hearing aids, something that could have improved my parent(s) ability to communicate better".

If only people realize how much a person needs hearing aid like a person needs his/her glasses.

Awareness and exposure, dear people. We need to do more of it!

Clinical Exam Fever

What are the chances of seeing the very word that I will be tested upon on a lorry?

Especially audiology terms?

Like, ZERO right?

But of course, chances are just chances.

Fate has decided to let me actually see the word RCG on a lorry.

Yeah, lorry.

How odd was that.

Except of course, I'm sure it means something else. But FYI, in audiology, RCG means Required Coupler Gain, of which we calculate to determine the amplification for hearing aids, in simpler terms.

I didn't know what the RCG on the lorry means as I think my heart stopped beating for a sec seeing the word. I was speechless. Honestly I did not want to know what it means anyway.

Basically, I think it's a sign for me to STUDY.

Okay, okay, I get it.

But I still want to watch a movie with bestie tomorrow. Haha.

Pray for me please! :(