STOP YELLING AT HEARING IMPAIRED

Do you have a parent or grandparent who is hard of hearing? Or maybe you’re noticing that your grandchildren need to speak up. If so, you may feel frustrated. If there’s one thing that upsets people, it’s when you ask them to repeat themselves. Instead of turning up the volume slightly, the tendency is to over react. Please don’t do that. It isn’t necessary. Stop yelling at hearing impaired people.

Just because someone is hard of hearing, you needn't yell at them — Stop Yelling At Hearing Impaired. Just face them and speak clearly. Raise your voice slightly until you can see they understand.

My Dad wore hearing aids for twenty five years. That’s when my hearing was perfect. I can remember getting upset one time when he didn’t understand what I said. I did actually yell at him. It was concerning a legal matter, and I was in a bad mood to begin with. Luckily, my Dad wasn’t the type to hold a grudge, and he didn’t get mad at me. But later, I was mad at myself for not being more considerate.

One of the unfortunate side effects of longevity is hearing loss. 50% of those over eighty years of age experience some. Mine began in my late seventies, when I started having trouble hearing my grandchildren. My husband’s hearing is much worse than mine, perhaps because he grew up around noisy farm machinery. I think my hearing loss is probably genetic.

Both of us wear hearing aids without embarrassment. However, we’re in the minority. Only a third of people who need hearing aids actually wear them. Most insurance policies don’t cover them. And even if they can afford them, most old people feel that they would be stigmatized if people knew they wore hearing aids.

But even the best hearing aids aren’t 100% effective. They don’t work well in gymnasiums or in places with high traffic. One of the worst problems we experience is talking on the phone to customer service representatives. For whatever reason, many tech support people have foreign accents. Not only that, they speak rapidly. And they do not suffer fools gladly. If you ask them to repeat themselves, or to speak more slowly and distinctly, they may become irritable and impatient. Often, they will simply hang up.

Friends and acquaintances are apt to be more tolerant when you explain you don’t hear well. But close relatives may find it hard to adjust to this new sign of aging. Why can’t you hear them like you used to? Maybe it scares them a little bit.

Here’s what to do if you are speaking to a hearing impaired person. Look at them directly, face to face, when you speak. Don’t turn your back or mumble. Don’t expect they’ll hear you if you’re in another room. All it takes is some common sense and a little patience. Make an effort to speak more clearly, and slightly louder until you’ve made sure they understand. Stop yelling at hearing impaired people. It’s condescending and demeaning. And there’s a good chance you’ll be in their same situation if you live long enough.

June 20, 2019June 20, 2019

VETERANS ENDURE LONG WAITS AT VA

Although veterans are entitled to free medical care, most don’t take advantage of it because they have private insurance. On the other hand, many vets have no other choice.. My husband drives 2 hours to the VA only for hearing aids, which aren’t covered by insurance. Unfortunately, the Audiology department has gone from an A Plus to a D Minus duringthe past year, in terms of scheduling. Their new policy dictates that patients can’t make appointments at all. Patients have to walk in and sign onto a waiting list. All patients, no matter how old or handicapped, must endure long waits in crowded hallways at the Indianapolis Veterans Administration Hospital That’s after they’ve circled the parking garage about 10 times before finding a place to park.

VA patients in Indianapolis audiology department endure long waits — VA PATIENTS CAN NO LONGER MAKE APPOINTMENTS IN THIS DEPARTMENT

Wasn’t patient care supposed to get better under this administration? And the last? And the one before that? It seems like every presidential campaign includes a promise to straighten things out with the Veterans Administration.

I don’t blame the staff in this department for the terrible decision to stop scheduling appointments. All of them are highly competent and caring individuals. They have to know it isn’t working. They see hundreds of elderly and disabled vets sitting on hard folding chairs in the hallways for hours on end. But someone Upstairs must have decided to fix something that wasn’t broken.

Did I mention hard folding chairs? I sat next to a 94 year old veteran who said he’d fought in the battle at Iwo Jima. He hadn’t been able to find a chair at all because there weren’t enough to accommodate everyone. Finally , a younger man offered him his seat. Many old vets stood in the aisles on crutches until someone had the grace to give up their own chair. I left my chair, thinking I could wait in the front lobby. Alas, all couches and chairs were occupied. So, I wandered around for awhile to see how things were going in the other departments. Most only had one or two patients seated comfortably while waiting.

Our doctor explained the situation would improve, once they replaced two staff members who had just quit. If they are short staffed, why not send an automated call to all of their patients, letting them know what’s going on? Better yet, tell them to see a local doctor and the VA will pick up the bill. I guess that just sounds too simple. Anyway, the new policy started several months ago, before these recent vacancies–and it never worked. to begin with.

While walking around the hospital, I noticed a bulletin board in the lobby where you could post suggestions and complaints. I was pretty mad by this time, so I scribbled the note you see and tacked it up on the board. By the time we left, someone had removed it. Also, I took pictures of people waiting in the hallways, but a staff member sternly warned me that this is not allowed in the hospital. I figured I’d better not mess with the feds, so I deleted those photos. I hope freedom of speech is still legal there, but maybe not.

March 1, 2019March 2, 2019

MEDICARE DOESN’T CARE IF YOU SEE, HEAR, CHEW

Medicare has been a godsend to seniors these past 50 years or so. And yet, the coverage leaves much to be desired. Why are hearing aids, eyeglasses and dental care considered luxuries that seniors can do without? Apparently, Medicare doesn’t care if you see or hear or chew. .

Dental care is important to health — Poor Dental Care Can Lead To Life Threatening Disease

Eye exams are not considered “medically necessary” unless you have a disease like diabetes or glaucoma, or cataracts. So, what happens to seniors who don’t qualify under these guidelines? if they happen to be living on social security, they may not be able to afford having eye exams or eyeglasses. Consequences of not seeing well? Can’t drive, or if you do, prone to accidents. Can’t read, which greatly diminishes quality of life. More apt to fall. The list goes on and on.

Hearing loss is not considered a medical necessity. So, if you’re driving a car and can’t hear a truck coming up beside you or a horn blasting, that’s no big deal? If you can’t talk on the telephone or hear what others are saying, how are you supposed to communicate? Elderly people who can’t hear well tend to become socially isolated. They can’t carry on normal conversations, and so they avoid social gatherings. Relationships with children and grandchildren are affected. All of these things lead to depression and loneliness. The truth is, loss of hearing can be hazardous to your health. But Medicare doesn’t care.

If a senior’s teeth rot , Medicare won’t help. It does not cover routine checkups, cleanings, fillings, dentures or tooth extractions. I recently went to the dentist to have my teeth cleaned. Since it had been two years since I’d been there, , they insisted on taking numerous X rays , but said I had to come back for a second visit before they would clean my teeth. After the cleaning, they informed me they had found a couple of tiny cavities that needed filling on yet another visit. The entire episode will cost about $500 for a couple of very simple procedures.

Tooth decay can lead to more serious problems than hearing loss or poor vision. Infected teeth can carry infection throughout the body, affecting the heart, liver, brain and all other organs of the body, resulting in death. And many seniors end up with no teeth at all, leading to poor nutrition and social isolation.

Ironically, very low income seniors are also eligible for Medicaid, which may cover some of these problems. But if you are just a normal person, and a few dollars above the income guidelines, you’re out of luck.