Of the many changes that come with aging, losing our ability to hear and see can be among the most frustrating, making it hard to do things long enjoyed.
But there are also guides, tools and public programs to help those with hearing and visual impairments live with their independence and community connections, said John Shattuck, a consultant with The Iris Network, a part of the Independence Without Fear program supporting individuals with dual sensory loss.
“We’re trying to help people with any degree of sensory impairment find help to live at home and get into the population,” said Shattuck, who was travelling through Aroostook County recently to meet with aging organizations and seniors groups to raise awareness about a host of services coordinated through The Iris Network.
The group estimates that about 20,000 Mainers have some level of dual sensory impairment, with vision problems in older individuals driven in part by the prevalence of type 2 diabetes. In Aroostook County, and a few other parts of the country, individuals from Acadian families have an increased chance of carrying the genetic condition known as Usher’s Syndrome, which leads to hearing loss and blindness.
For seniors with declining vision, staying active through walking can maintain mobility and good health, and listening to radio and audio programming can be a good substitute for reading and television, Shattuck said. Likewise, people with hearing problems can use technology, such as headphones, for entertainment, and email or text messaging to communicate.
While not as great as our full sight and sound, the natural products of millions of years of evolution, a range of low- and high-tech equipment are available for hearing and visual impairment and can make a big difference in “sustaining quality of life,” Shattuck said.
There are free and low-cost services and aid equipment such as doorbell and smoke alarm lighting, headphones for the television, phone texting, tablet computers with large text and computer programs to read documents or media aloud, Shattuck said.
“People with varying degrees of combined hearing and vision loss can get free computer equipment,” supported by a national phone bill tax through an Universal Service Fund.
These include a tablet computer, or laptops, a menu of equipment with tactile tools, large fonts, scheduling. “It’s a service that’s being underutilized,” Shattuck said.
There are also helpful new sensory aid tools being developed for tablet computers and phones, such as a free software program called NavCog, which uses a GPS system to guide blind individuals with precise walking directions.
Hearing aids can cost as much $4,000, just for one. MaineCare will cover it for those eligible, while Disability Rights Maine also has an assistance program, currently with a waiting list.
Schattuck said that seniors with hearing and sight problems can also benefit from volunteer
networks, people in their community who can take them to the grocery store or walk around town. As part of the Independence Without Fear program, the University of Southern Maine is offering free training sessions to organizations and community leaders across the state. They can “help you live at home and get into the population, to provide information and help them learn to walk on their own,” he added.
