hard of hearing to RN

[nursingyoursoul]

Hi, I have a slight hearing problem, i don't wear hearing aids although I probably should. My question is. After a dr. sees a patient Do they write down the orders and then you follow them? Or do they verbally relay them to you first. I know I can do this but, I'm scared. I worry constantly that I wont hear something, and that I'll mess something up because I didn't hear it right. Any advice?

[nursingyoursoul]

I spoke with a man at the House Ear Institute in L.A. on that very subject last summer because it had piqued my interest too. He said it's 10+ years out.

Well that's a long time from now, but we really wont know until it happens. But, what I did read about it on the next made it sound like no more than five years. And who knows, maybe another country will make it happen over in their neck of the woods sooner and I'll just fly there and have it done. (DREAMING) But, still it's an awsome piece of information to know it's even in the making. I wish this for every deaf and HOH person. But you know, it's a noisy world out there and I don't hear a lot of it to the extent that someone with normal hearing would hear daily so that could be hard to get use to as well. But atleast I could hear normal again. :chuckle

[KayPea]

As a person with profound sensori-neural hearing loss in both ears, I'm shocked you haven't paid a visit to a licensed audiologist yet for assessment.

First of all I want to say good for you for pursuing a career in nursing. I cannot agree with your comments more.

To nursingyoursoul: As I mentioned in my other post, hearing aids have come a long way in recent years. My advice is if you are still struggling to hear you need to get a second opinion. Also, make sure this is a qualified audiologist. Also, the audiologist may give you some advice regarding other accomodations that can be employed if hearing aids are not appropriate for you. Certainly appropriate seating in your classes (at the front) is a must to aid with hearing and speechreading. If hearing aids are hurting your ears, there is something definitely wrong. It probably means that the hearing aids were set too loud and that perhaps the audiologist was too aggressive in his/her treatment. If you are struggling with background noise, you should discuss this with your audiologist.

It is right that hearing aids are not like glasses. Hearing aids amplify the sound but do not "correct" the problem in the same way. With sensorineural hearing loss, there is a clarity problem as well as a decrease in volume. So the hearing aids are amplifying the sound so that the person can detect the sounds, but not hearing the same way as a person with normal hearing. This is one reason why we use an FM system with students in school. The FM system reduces the effect of background noise and also the distance factor between the teacher and student. However, in saying all that, hearing aids ARE being changed to compensate for background noise and there are different settings, sometimes even with a remote to adjust your listening options.

I would discourage people from looking for a cure for their hearing instead of seeking out proper accomodation/intervention. I haven't heard of the gene research that you mentioned, but that is a long way from coming into play. I know they are researching the Connex 26 gene, the most common cause for genetic deafness, at the Hospital for Sick Children in T.O.

What people need to do imho is to look at the here and now. What do you need to be able to get through nursing school and also to be the most effective nurse possible? I can't know what is right for an individual, but certainly people should thoroughly investigate what help is available for his/her individual situation, and then act on it. Cover all the bases so to speak.