Millions of Americans experience some degree of hearing loss. The Social Security Administration (SSA) operates programs that provide cash disability benefits to people with permanent impairments like hearing loss, if they can show that their impairments meet stringent SSA criteria and their earnings are below an SSA threshold. The National Research Council convened an expert committee at the request of the SSA to study the issues related to disability determination for people with hearing loss. This volume is the product of that study. Hearing Loss: Determining Eligibility for Social Security Benefits reviews current knowledge about hearing loss and its measurement and treatment, and provides an evaluation of the strengths and weaknesses of the current processes and criteria. It recommends changes to strengthen the disability determination process and ensure its reliability and fairness. The book addresses criteria for selection of pure tone and speech tests, guidelines for test administration, testing of hearing in noise, special issues related to testing children, and the difficulty of predicting work capacity from clinical hearing test results. It should be useful to audiologists, otolaryngologists, disability advocates, and others who are concerned with people who have hearing loss.

Some 28 million people in America and 350 million people worldwide live with hearing loss. How do these people and their families cope? What are their experiences of pain, humor, and hope? What support do medicine and technology now offer them, and what is on the horizon? In this engaging and practical book, David Myers, who has himself suffered gradual hearing loss, explores the problems faced by the hard of hearing at home and at work and provides information on the new technology and groundbreaking surgical procedures that are available. Drawing on both his own experiences and his expertise as a social psychologist, Myers recounts how he has coped with hearing loss and how he has incorporated technological aids into his life. The family and friends of the hard of hearing also face adjustments. Myers addresses their situation and provides advice for them on how best to alert loved ones to a hearing problem, persuade them to seek assistance, and encourage them to adjust to and use hearing aids.

Hearing Impairment - An Invisible Disability is the first work of its kind to comprehensively cover all aspects of hearing impairment. It covers the following categories through more than 100 contributions from all over the world to constitute an encyclopedia of hearing impairment: - Hearing Basics: What does hearing impairment mean? Its causes and effects are explained through many real-world examples. - Children: Childhood is a time when hearing impairment often begins, so proper treatment at an early stage can help alleviate difficulties and allow for as normal a life as possible. Many case studies from both the developed and developing parts of the world, including Indonesia and Latin America in the latter category, are provided to aid comprehension. - Hearing Aids: Through newly emerging technology and with the help of electronics companies, new and affordable hearing aids are being developed and marketed. The authors take a closer look at this burgeoning field. - Medical Aspects: Medical treatment of hearing impairment has recently shown remarkable change, manifested in improved techniques and applications all over the world. Although mainly of relevance to researchers and practicing physicians, the clear explanation of the medical and technical terminology is likely to be of interest to all concerned with the future of hearing impairment. - Social and International Help: With a wealth of assistance from individuals, NGOs, and international organizations specifically tailored to help the hearing impaired, those in need of guidance can gain confidence from the knowledge that substantial support is available to help them pursue a full and varied life.

The loss of hearing - be it gradual or acute, mild or severe, present since birth or acquired in older age - can have significant effects on one's communication abilities, quality of life, social participation, and health. Despite this, many people with hearing loss do not seek or receive hearing health care. The reasons are numerous, complex, and often interconnected. For some, hearing health care is not affordable. For others, the appropriate services are difficult to access, or individuals do not know how or where to access them. Others may not want to deal with the stigma that they and society may associate with needing hearing health care and obtaining that care. Still others do not recognize they need hearing health care, as hearing loss is an invisible health condition that often worsens gradually over time. In the United States, an estimated 30 million individuals (12.7 percent of Americans ages 12 years or older) have hearing loss. Globally, hearing loss has been identified as the fifth leading cause of years lived with disability. Successful hearing health care enables individuals with hearing loss to have the freedom to communicate in their environments in ways that are culturally appropriate and that preserve their dignity and function. Hearing Health Care for Adults focuses on improving the accessibility and affordability of hearing health care for adults of all ages. This study examines the hearing health care system, with a focus on non-surgical technologies and services, and offers recommendations for improving access to, the affordability of, and the quality of hearing health care for adults of all ages.

Hearing loss doesn’t come with an operating manual—until now. If you have hearing loss, you already know that the conventional approach to treatment is focused on hearing-aid technology. Without a handbook to help you figure out how to actually live with it, you’ve likely been getting by on information pieced together from various sources—and yet, communication often seems incomplete and unsatisfying. What’s missing from this hearing care model is the big picture—a real-life illustration of how hearing loss, its emotions, and its barriers affect every corner of your life. Now, hearing-health advocates, consultants, and speakers Shari Eberts and Gael Hannan offer a new skills-based approach to hearing loss that is centered not on hearing better, but on communicating better. With honesty and humor, they share their own hearing loss journeys, and outline invaluable insights, strategies, and workarounds to help you engage with the world and be heard. You’ll gain tips for navigating all areas impacted by hearing loss, including relationships, work, technology; strategies for adopting a new, empowering mindset towards your hearing loss; and communication behaviors that can make almost any listening situation manageable. Informed by the lived experiences of thousands of people living with hearing loss, and corroborated by hearing science, technological advances, and modern hearing-care principles, Hear & Beyond offers a new way forward to greater connection and engagement—whether you’re new to hearing loss or have been living with it for a long time. Hearing loss is just one aspect of who you are, among many others. You may have hearing loss, but it doesn’t have to have you.

The author of this book describes hearing loss and its common early signs, discusses its kinds and cause, and gives information on seeking a professional evaluation.

If you think hearing loss is just a condition of old age-think again. In The Way I Hear It, Gael Hannan explodes one myth after another in a witty and insightful journey into life with hearing loss at every age. Blending personal stories with practical strategies, Gael shines a light onto a world of communication challenges: a marriage proposal without hearing aids in, pillow talk and other relationships, raising a child, going to the movies, dining out, ordering at the drive-thru, in the classroom, on the job and hearing technology. Part memoir, part survival guide, The Way I Hear It offers tips for effective communication, poetic reflections, and heart-warming stories from people she has met in her workshops and at conferences throughout North America. Gael's humorous stories are backed by hearing loss research, and she offers advice on how to bridge the gap between consumer and professional in order to get the best possible hearing health care. The Way I Hear It is a book for people with hearing loss-but also for their families, friends and the professionals who serve them. Gael Hannan shares not only the daily frustrations, but also a strong message of hope and optimism for living successfully with hearing loss....