Wanted: Hearing Aid info

[sid]

Clair, You've made some good progress there; I'm sure I'd have had difficulty ploughing through the formalities. Good luck for a satisfactory resolution.

Frecossais, Your problem with hearing in a crowded room is more common than most people imagine,  and although it's my wife who is actually deaf, I've begun to notice this problem myself in my own hearing, which I believe is age related. From what I've been told most hearing aids will not really help as all they do is amplify what's already there, so in a noisy room you just get more noise. What can help is having a directional switch facility on the aid which allows you to hear whoever/whatever you are facing, and this helps to filter the sounds you want to hear.

We have received some information from my wife's hearing aid manufacturer (she has a BAHA, a Bone Attached Hearing Aid) and it now appears that the operation (a post has to be inserted in the skull just behind th ear) and the device itself is now partially covered by the French health service, but only if the French ORL specialist. My wif'es was fitted in UK under the NHS so we've fallen into a sort of black hole where she is covered by neither service and have had to continue with purchasing replacements (£3000) every three years at our own cost. Batteries are cheap enough purchased online.

As a further comment, whilst we've watched some of the paralympic athletes with admiration, I can't see how it's doing anything for the vast majority of the population who have hadicaps and disabilities; only a select elite. Hearing in particular gets little attention. How far do you think a deaf person would have to go in order to be able to watch a film with subtitles? In my experience there is no such place because the other clients don't want the clutter of "all those words" distracting them.

 

[Frecossais]

I'd not heard of the BAHA, Sid, the Audiologist I see has never mentioned it. My hearing difficulty is also age-related, though it started when I was relatively young. I can still do without hearing aids when I'm in more intimate company. Maybe  the implanted device is for those with little or no hearing.

It's horrifying that your wife has to pay so much and so frequently to ensure a quality of life. I think the condition is generally under-rated in France (from reading the posts in this thread). In fact it can be quite debilitating, making social occasions a nightmare. Before retirement I was a teacher, and the last couple of years were truly awful. I couldn't tell where sound was coming from, and wearing aids was disorientating because of the background noise. I remember that I could hear the teacher in the class at the other end of the corridor, more clearly than my own class.

I hope both Mr Clair and your wife get what they need and are happy with it.

[sid]

My wife had the BAHA fitted in 2000 and was one of the first in the UK to get it; there had been around 70 before. It is particularly indicated when the small bone mechanisms of the inner ear have been destroyed but the cochlear is still functioning. Sound waves are amplified, and transmitted by vibration to the cochlear. It is possible to have 2 fitted but stereo sound doesn't work too well as both side pick up the vibrations. She thinks that the sound qualirty is good, very good infact, compared to her previous standard hearing aids. It's only practical disadvantage is that she cannot wear a hat, a small price to pay. The procedure is not widely available in France, probably because of the cost; together with the costs of the implant operation without which it doesn't work at all it would cost in the region 5000€. I find it incredible that it's ignored when I've just had a cataract operation for which the total cost was borne by the health service (around 1300€). Both procedures have an immediate and improving effect on everyday life.

[Clair]

[quote user="Clair"]We've just had a visit from an occupational therapist sent by the grant people. She needed to assess Mr Clair's disability level in order for him to be officially declared a disabled worker.

This will give access to another grant which will fund most of the hearing aids.

Once everything comes together (mutuelle + CPAM + 2 grants), we should have to pay around 300€ (out of 3000€), which is very good news.

The flip side of all this is the time factor.

With yet another file to complete and submit, we're looking at January 2013 before Mr Clair can be fitted, unless I can convince the shop (fitting specialist) to start the trial period now, with a view to issue a final invoice at the time when the grants come together.

Hey ho...[/quote]

Quick update on the hearing aid front, 4 months after Mr Clair's hearing test...

We have been advised that the proposal for the one of the grants is listed for agreement at the next meeting in December. There should be no problem for Mr Clair to obtain the maximum allowed, which is 2 x 280€.

The occupational therapist emailed me today to let me know the file for the other grant request is now complete and she will forward it to the appropriate body. This means Mr Clair will be listed as a disabled worker who needs hearing aids in the course of his work.

Now we wait.

What a bleeding administrative maze!

[Clair]

[quote user="Clair"]... 4 months after Mr Clair's hearing test...[/quote]

Got a letter yesterday, asking for an up-to-date quote for the hearing aids, as the one we enclosed with the grant application is over 3 months old... [Www]

Gotta laugh!!

[Frecossais]

[quote user="Clair"][quote user="Clair"]... 4 months after Mr Clair's hearing test...[/quote]

Got a letter yesterday, asking for an up-to-date quote for the hearing aids, as the one we enclosed with the grant application is over 3 months old... [Www]

Gotta laugh!!

[/quote]

Or cry!

[Clair]

Sigh...

The up-to-date quote arrived yesterday.

I'm posting it today, together with a "proof of entitlement".

As this grant is only available to working disabled people, the main condition for the file to be accepted is for Mr Clair to be officially disabled.

As things stand, this side of things is still in progress, though the outcome is not in question.

I almost lost my rag with the condescending and unhelpful person at the end of the phone, who eventually agreed that a copy of a letter would be a suitable alternative to confirm his soon-to-be status as a disabled worker.

I'm hoping to get the whole thing completed by end of Jan 2013...

[idun]

And there was me thinking that you'd be telling us that he now had his hearing aids and all was a lot better!

I am so sorry that it has taken so long. It has always felt just plain wrong that something so fundamental as the sense of 'hearing' is so expensive in France, so good for those with bucket loads of money and tant pis for the rest of us.

My husband has a digital hearing aid, and his hearing is better than it was, but has never been as good as a 'hearing' persons, even with the aid, which I find vaguely disappointing, but my hopes and expectations were probably too high[:(]

[Clair]

[quote user="idun"]And there was me thinking that you'd be telling us that he now had his hearing aids... [/quote]

Believe me, the day that happens, I'll be SHOUTING it all over the forum!! [:D][:-))]

[Clair]

We're almost there, I can feel it![I]

Two bits of good news in time for Christmas:

The smallest grant has been approved.

The status as disabled worker has been granted, which means the largest grant (which is solely dependent on that status) should be forthcoming in January/February.

Almost doing a jig! [:D][:D]

[woolybanana]

We hear you, Clair, we do.

[Clair]

I've been phoning to get some news everyday (and sometimes twice a day!) to get an update on Mr Clair's file, as we hadn't heard anything from this particular office since early November.

After being given 4 different names of people supposedly in charge of the file, after being told several times that someone would call "within 48h", after being told the documents I had provided (at their request) were not the ones they needed, that they were correct but incomplete, after being kept on hold having to suffer endless repeat of pointless messages between bouts of plinky-plonky music, I finally lost it yesterday and fired off an incensed - yet polite - letter to the Regional Head Honcho (useful tool, the internet [:)]).

He definitely knew who is in charge of the file, because I've just had a call to let me know the file will be discussed and a decision made on Monday! [:P]

All it took was a letter and 24 hours! Not bad after being ignored for 11 weeks!

[Frecossais]

How frustrating for you both, but I'm glad you seem to have got things moving again. Hope it won't be long before the telly can be turned down a little. [:)][:)]

[Clair]

[quote user="Frecossais"]...it won't be long before the telly can be turned down a little. [:)][:)] [/quote]

Two words: wireless headphones! [:D]

I sure hope we get a positive answer next week...

[Clair]

The long-awaited for letter of approval had finally landed in the letterbox today!

They have agreed to provide 1600€ for Mr Clair's purchase of 2 hearing aids, and I'll be able to make an appointment next week for Mr Clair to begin a 2-week trial.

It's been 8 months since the appointment with the specialist, and 7 months since I completed the first form.

I think I'll open a bottle of Spitfire tonight! [:D]

[suein56]

[quote user="Clair"]It's been 8 months since the appointment with the specialist, and 7 months since I completed the first form.

I think I'll open a bottle of Spitfire tonight! [:D]

[/quote]

Well done ! [:)] Congratulations - for your staying power and perseverance - and not least for your determination to see this through to the end.

I am full of admiration. [:D]

Having no idea what Spitfire is I am not sure whether to say go for it or be careful, but whichever is appropriate ... have a good evening the two of you.

Sue

[Gardengirl]

What good news, Clair!

I've not known much about hearing aids until recently when my SIL went for some, although I wasn't even aware that she needed any - she always seems able to hear when we chat on the phone, inrestaurants etc. She hasn't got on at all well with what she had, and seems to be back and forth to her local hospital department in Hampshire, including today again.

[Clair]

[quote user="suein56"]Having no idea what Spitfire is I am not sure whether to say go for it or be careful, but whichever is appropriate ... have a good evening the two of you.

Sue [/quote]

Thanks Sue and GardenGirl!

Spitfire Ale HERE (as found on occasion in our Leclerc [:)])

@GardenGirl: I have no idea what sort of choice is available on the NHS, but the range and options in the shops here are just mind-boggling... as are the prices!

[idun]

The range may be mind boggling, but not every model suits every body. I'm glad that they are giving him a trial set and hope that he isn't too long before he gets some that suit him.

Will you still have to buy the batteries when he gets his hearing aids????

[Frecossais]

I only have NHS hearing aids, so don't know whether privately bought ones have the same effects. Nor do I know anyone else who wears NHS aids, but I find that I get a lot more ear wax by wearing them and have to frequently have my ears syringed. I also get regular outer ear infections, not painful but itchy, for which I have to get an ear drop prescription.

The plastic bit that fits in my ear turns yellow over time, even with regular cleaning, and I quite often get a whistling from my aids that is audible to people sitting near me. That said, I couldn't be without them, except when OH is watching something on TV that I'm not interested in. If I want to read, I just take them out.

I'd be interested in knowing how your OH gets on with his in the fullness of time, Clair.

[sid]

I'm so pleased for you Clair (and your OH of course). Perseverence pays!

We'll be looking for some help with my wife's replacement BAHA device by this time next year; so far we've only been able to obtain these from UK at our own expense (£3k each). The operation was done by NHS 10 years ago and is all free of course over there, whereas here it was unheard of (ouch, sorry about that awful unintended pun). Just recently regional BAHA clinics have opened up and the same device now has some financial support, so we're keeping our fingers crossed.

[Clair]

If all the stars remain aligned, if the current dusting of snow doesn't turn into a blizzard, if a meteorite doesn't crash on our house and provided the hearing-aids arrive as expected, Mr Clair should start his fitting trial next Wednesday![:-))][:-))]

Last Friday's appointment saw Mr Clair with some sort of modelling clay pushed inside both his ears, so that casts could be made for his "in-ear" pieces, and these should be ready to be fitted next Friday.

The guy is young and friendly, and he speaks reasonable English which he seemed quite keen to practice!

It's really happening! I should soon be able to give my voice a rest! [:-))]

[idun]

In his ears???? My husband's have tiny plastic wires that go into the ear and the main part of the aid is behind the ear. Frankly you cannot tell he has them in, I had really thought that having something in the ear was a thing of the past, but apparently I am wrong in thinking this.

[Clair]

[quote user="idun"]In his ears???? My husband's have tiny plastic wires that go into the ear and the main part of the aid is behind the ear. Frankly you cannot tell he has them in, I had really thought that having something in the ear was a thing of the past, but apparently I am wrong in thinking this.[/quote]

There are different kinds of pieces which fit at the end of the tube.

From your description, I assume your husband, has a clear silicone dome tip like this, which fits on the inside edge of the ear.

Because of the severity of his hearing loss, it's best for Mr Clair to have moulded amplifiers similar to these at the end of the tube, as they custom-made to fit inside the ear canal, rather than a bog-standard silicone tip which fits at the inside edge of the ear.

Far from being "a thing of the past", this actually maximises the efficiency of the hearing aid and minimises sound loss, which is essential for someone who suffers from severe hearing loss.

Like a dome tip, it is also almost unnoticeable.

[idun]

I had not seen them before Clair as all my husband was offered was the ones you suggested. Mind you, even with them IMO he doesn't hear that well, so we'll see this summer when he gets tested again. Maybe he will be a candidate for something 'stronger'.

At least it is all free here for him, which we appreciate.