Corporate News:
FREE
Shipping with your TTY OrdersNow
you can purchase any Ultratec TTY
device from Assistech at no shipping
cost. Hurry up. This promotion
is for a limited time only.
Starting
with this edition, we'll be bringing you information about
new products and technologies that we hope will enhance
the quality of your life. Please check out the new Product
Spotlight section below.
Currency
Converters Soon to be Available
We are in
the process of adding currency converters to the
translated sections of our web site. This will give
international shoppers the ability to price the products
in their local currency.
To see this new feature in action, please visit http://azhearing.com/portugues/telefones-amplificados.htm
and click the dollar sign icon. Eventually, we would like
to have a currency converter on every single product page
of our web site.
In
Need of Assistive Devices but Don't Know where to Start?
The League
for the Hard of Hearing (LHH) put together an informative
primer for individuals in need of assistive listening
devices. For more information you may visit their web site
or go to http://azhearing.com/ald-primer.htm
FREE
Visual Tests at AzHearing.com
We are
pleased to announce the inclusion of two visual tests on
our web site. One is meant to measure a person's visual
acuity and the other one (Optical Illusions) is just for
fun. You can take these tests at http://azhearing.com/visual-acuity-test.htm
and http://azhearing.com/optical-illusions.htm.
More on
Vision - We've been working on our web site to make it
more accessible for people with visual loss. Considering
the size and scope of the site, the task is overwhelming
since it involves text-labeling every single image and
adding meta tags to every single text link. Eventually, we
envision a "text-only" version of the web site
for easier navigation by people who are blind or visually
impaired. In case you didn't know, there are computer
programs (called "screen readers") that will
read out web pages for the Blind.
 Product
Spotlight:
The Invisible Clock
This
unique device (pictured on your right) offers a new, more
relaxing way to stay on top of time. Whether you have a
hearing or memory deficit or need to discreetly time a
counseling session (or any other event), the Invisible
Clock has special features to help:
Silent
Alarm - The Invisible Clock can be set to beep or
vibrate.
Meeting/Interval
Timer - vibrates at halfway point, again five minutes
before time is up, and at time's up, for any interval you
set.
Multiple
Alarms - You can set up to 12 different alarms to
vibrate or beep at various times during the day, which
gives you amazing flexibility to handle just about any
time management challenge.
Repeating
Timer - Set the timer to alert once or to repeat
itself, vibrating or beeping at any interval you choose
for as long as you like. It's an excellent way to pace any
repetitive task. Great for building new habits or as a
memory aid.
For
more information or to place an order, please go to http://www.azhearing.com/cgi-bin/shopper.cgi?preadd=action&key=iclock
Correction
In
the previous issue of our Newsletter we said that Ameriphone
would soon release the CL-40i amplified cordless phone with
caller ID. I just spoke with Alicia in Customer Service and
she indicated to me that the release date is still unknown
at this time.
As
far as the PL-40 Personal Listener, which was expected to
roll out sometime in August, Plantronics/Walker has
identified a product performance issue with this particular
unit so it won't be available until they get clearance from
their Engineering Department. Sorry, folks, about the
misinformation.
Did
you know that ...
Winners
of the June & July Prize Drawings
Congratulations
Arthur Koenig (Morgantown, WV) and Roger Schroeder
(Ijamsville, MD), the lucky winners of our monthly prize
drawings.
Each will receive a
talking clinical thermometer as promised in our previous
Newsletter.
Interested in
participating in our prize drawings? Read box on your left
for details.
Feature
Article & Links:
There's
Light at the End of the Tunnel
- By Irene Slovak As
the years flew by, my hearing decreased. At the beginning,
the TV, radio and conversations had to be louder.
The sound
become consciously irritating to anyone close. Finally, I
was told to get a hearing test and the result was my first
hearing aid. It was an in-the-ear, almost invisible aid. I
accepted that.
But
within a year, the aid become larger, and then finally, I
had to get a large behind-the-ear hearing aid. My hearing
had progressed to a very poor condition and we had gone as
far as we could with the standard hearing aids.
An
audiologist called a hearing aid company to try the newest
aid, which was strong and gave the highest level of hearing
in a hearing aid. The audiologist and the representative
from the company tested my hearing with the new aid. There
was very little improvement from the previous aid.
Both
people suggested that I should stay with that new aid
because there was nothing else.
A few
months before this meeting, my husband and I had gone to a
seminar at which a physician and several other professionals
discussed a relatively new hearing device. It was for a
hearing condition that had severe hearing loss, or complete
deafness.
I had
stayed in touch with the person who conducted this seminar.
At the time, she told me I was not ready for the device but
we continued to correspond.
After the
meeting with the audiologist and the company representative,
I called Dr. W, at the Cochlear Implant Office. I faxed a
copy of my latest hearing test and told her what had
transpired.
This
final solution was what I needed now.
A
cochlear implant is just that. It is a surgery that
implants, under the skin and behind an ear, a device that is
wired to the natural cochlea. The outside equipment consists
of a behind-the-ear mold which connects the wires. There is
also a transmitter which becomes magnetized to the implant.
All these are wired to a processor which helps to correct
the hearing through the programs entered by your
audiologist. This is individualized to the person's needs.
The
surgery is minor and just one overnight in the hospital.
Thereafter, there is a three week period where there is no
sound. The equipment cannot be attached before a physical
healing takes place.
After the
three weeks, the audiologist, with great aplomb, awards you
with the equipment and the program in your processor. It
takes a while to become accustomed to the new sounds and
programs. Each day, with practice, you can hear more and do
more with this new equipment. It is going up instead of down
with your hearing, and the future looks brighter and louder.
Irene
Slovak taught public schools for 20 years before she retired
to start a business of selling books and publishing BOSC --
a Directory for People with Special Needs. She confesses
she's ready to retire now and would gladly do so if someone
took over her Directory. Irene lives in Rockland County, NY,
near her sons and other members of the family. She enjoys
watching her gardens grow in the spring.
Reprinted
with the author's permission.
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