There is a great deal of difference between hearing loss and deafness, and accommodations that work for one group are not always helpful for the other. For instance, sign language interpreters, although extremely helpful for the deaf community, are of no use to the hard of hearing because the majority of these individuals do not know how to sign. Closed captioning and automated speech recognition, although better than nothing, are often difficult for deaf people to follow and understand. This is because sign language truly is a different language than English, with its own rules for word order and punctuation. Another example is that voice inflections to communicate a question or sarcasm are replaced with facial expressions and body language.
Deafness has sometimes been referred to as the silent epidemic. It is estimated that, at some point in their lives, more than 275 million people around the world suffer from it. The reasons vary and include aging, medical conditions, noise pollution, misusing personal musical devices, diet, and heredity. No one is immune to the loss of this precious sense. Find out the state of your hearing. Consult with a registered audiologist at LINDSAY EAR CLINIC. Our services include thorough consultations, comprehensive testing, expert evaluations, custom fittings, in-house repairs, and follow-up care.
P.S. People who are born with normal hearing may find the adjustments made for the hearing impaired easier to acclimate to than those who have never heard spoke English.
