Hearing impaired nurses

Nurses Disabilities

Published

Hi , my daughter was in her second semester of a nursing program in a private school and recieved great grades in all subjects but failed her clinical because she couldn't hear the low tone of some heart beats. She has 94 and 97% hearing in both ears when wearing her digital hearing aides. We purchased a 500.00 amplified stethscope so she can hear the heartbeat but some of the low tones ,she just can't hear. She is in her fourth year of college and is really depressed about this. Isn't there devices that can automatically detect the heartbeat on a monitor or something. She can do everything else a nurse does. Is it the nursing schools responsibility to inform there disabled students of available equipment to assist them ? Thanks

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Specializes in OR.

I am a Deaf RN, the term 'hearing impaired" is offensive. I suggest reading the ADA and checking the school's requirements on student instruction, perhaps talking with a counselor at the school.

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Can you tell me how you passed your clinicals. What device did you use for checking the lungs and blood pressure that this school won't allow. Thanks

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Specializes in Hem/Onc, LTC, AL, Homecare, Mgmt, Psych.

I am hearing impaired. I personally don't find it offensive. I know deaf culture frowns upon impairments and would rather see hard of hearing used or deaf terminology for that matter. But anyway. I grew up being called hearing impaired and it doesn't bother me. Maybe it should.

I have a cardionics stethoscope. It has a setting for low tones and high tones. It has a volume control as well and is battery operated. I tried having Audibel custom create ear tips for me to wear over my hearing aides but it actually seemed to diminish the sounds, so I tried headphones... got too much feedback, turns out what I have to do is take my hearing aids out and put the stethoscope ear tips in crank up the volume and select the tone setting. This simplest solution enabled me to hear what I needed to. Even to this day co-workers want to try my stethoscope, it is really awesome. In the long run the equipment is a lot of money, I will say that! But is worth it to have peace of mind.

Here's a link to my scope http://www.cardionics.com/stethoscopes/clinical/ Cardionics customer service is seriously great and talking to them on the phone they helped me out quite a bit as well.

Here's a link to more adaptive equipment that actually prints out, records, and plays back heart and lung sounds http://www.allheart.com/ca7188000.html I've never personally used it but I know that there it's being used by deaf nurses out there.

This site: http://www.amphl.org/ has different types of equipment to look at as well plus all kinds of other resources for medical prof with hearing losses. I know when I was trying to find a good stethoscope I emailed someone on there and they helped me.

Please, please tell your daughter not to get discouraged, she's made it this far. I graduated on the President's list 4.0, it will be a great accomplishment for your daughter to keep going, and it is totally do-able. Yes, meet with the school counselor and even the nursing director to figure out a plan to go forward with. If she needs someone to chat with she can email me, just send me a message here. I'm not too old (32) and it sounds like our losses are similar. :)

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Specializes in Hem/Onc, LTC, AL, Homecare, Mgmt, Psych.
http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ocr/index.html -- From the ADA website I linked to Dept of education and office for civil rights. There must be some information on there to help you with the school to get the correct equipment set up. I also want to add that I didn't get much (erm... ANY) support from my nursing instructors or college counselors. Luckily I had figured out what was going to work for me before I got to the clinical components.
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I, too, am wrestling with this issue. I start school in September. My issue is that I wear In The Ear (ITE) hearing aids. I have resolved that I will have to take them out when I use the stethoscope, but I don't know if I will be able to get by with a regular acoustic stethoscope or not. I'm prepared to spend the extra money on an electronic scope, but you can't try them out anywhere, so what to do?

I like the thought of the Thinklabs but it isn't available right now and probably won't be before September.

Does anybody have any advice on my situation, with in-the-ear aides? I've looked at the Cardionics model that includes headphones, so that I wouldn't have to take my aides out... but what a way to yell to the world, "Hey! I have a hearing problem!" I don't really want to do that. I am not ashamed of my hearing loss, and I'll take on anyone who tries to make me feel I can't do this job because of it, but I don't want people treating me "differently" right out of the gate, ya know?

I will definitely be checking out the ADA site. I talked with a person in the nursing school, before I was accepted, and her jaw dropped when I told her I wear hearing aids. She was concerned, of course, until I took them out and told her I could hear her just fine without them (but I didn't mention that I would not do so well in a noisy room!).

Anyway, I would appreciate any advice on which amplified/electronic stethoscope to buy, etc., especially anyone who has experience with aides like mine! Thanks!

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Specializes in Urgent Care.

I currently wear bilateral BTE hearing aids. My right ear is my better ear and my left is just useless in any case (I wear bilaterals to balance my equilibrium :)). I use an electronic lipman stethoscope with volume control. I take my right ear out and can hear lung sounds and heart sounds. I put extra effort into hearing them that sometimes I catch issues quicker then someone who isn't deaf or HOH. As far as hearing someone while the stethoscope is in my ear, I just tell that person that I can't hear with the stethoscope in my ear. How many medical professionals do you know that can hear the patient talking to them with the stethoscope in their ears? Not many in my experience. I did consider and talked with my Audiologist about getting holes drilled into my ear molds to accept smaller diameter stethoscope loops but that would cause more feedback and decided against it.

I wear scrub pants that have a large pocket on the right leg for my report paper and a smaller one inside the larger one which is dedicated for my hearing aid. These are the two things that I can not afford to lose during my shift and it works out perfectly as long as I don't get clumsy. I worked on an ambulance as a paramedic for over 16yrs and I had a similiar method with my cargo pants and at that time I wore bilateral ITEs. I did fine with that too. I have longer hair and it was easy to take out my hearing aid after turning it off to prevent feedback and slip it effortlessly into my little pocket. Most people do not notice and if they did, they wouldn't say anything because it is just not a big deal. I have more issue with co-workers not facing me while they talk to me then anything, that is when I need to educated so that I can get my job done. Just because someone can hear 100% does not mean deaf/HOH person can't too they might have to rely on other things to add to their hearing, like lip reading. Most hearing people don't understand and why would they unless they are educated? Nursing is stressfull enough and I don't want my deafness to add to that stress if I can help it.

I hope everyone finds what works best for them because there is a way!!!!

Good Luck!

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just asking, I am HOH on my right ear. need hearing aid. it is a=sad when you work in health field and looked down or your colleagues' making remarks like you cannot hear. 

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