HARD OF HEARING LEAGUE

Dominion, Volume 37, Issue 188, 8 May 1944, Page 6

HARD OF HEARING LEAGUE

Government Request TESTS OF WAR-DEAFENED SERVICEMEN Recognition and appreciation of the valuable work being carried out in Aew Zealand by the 'Hard of Hearing Dengue have been shown by a recent decision ot the Government, which has asked the league to test war-deafened servicemen so that they may be fitted with suitable hearing aids, and that, if necessary, airangements may be made for them to receive lessons in lip-reading. The Dominion conference of teachers of lip-reading of the league and: other delegates was held recently in Christchurch, Dr. Hardie Neil, Auckland, Dominion .president, presiding. .. Mr. J. Montgomery, president ot the Christchurch branch, when welcoming the delegates, mentioned that it was hoped, among other things, to induce the Government to have the hearing of school children tested; if it were found at an early age that children were hard ot hearing much might be done to save them from deafness. , ~ , Among the subjects discussed was that of doing all possible to help m the readjustment of deafened and hard-ot-hearing servicemen and women, the speaker being Mrs. G. A. Hurd-Wood, founder of the league in New Zealand. She said that in Britain od.OOT men were so seriously deafened in the last war that thev obtained pensions or allowances. An American ear specialist, Dr. Walter Hughson, said a f e"' nionths ago that he estimated there would be 2aO,UUU cases of impaired hearing among American servicemen as a result of the present war. Mrs. Hurd-Wood said she had heard from London in November, 19R>, that no publications on rehabilitation ot deafened servicemen and women were available, but that the Ministry of 1 ensions was providing hearing aids and lipreading for each individual case. Ihe literature that was available came trom America, a country that is actively, interested in recently'deafened persons. Other speakers were Dr, N. lonock, Dr. T. A. Mac Gibbon, Mrs. D. E. Johnson and Miss.®. M. Ash. It was reported that a branch of the New Zealand League for the Hard ot Hearing was formed in Invercavgill on Thursday, after an address given by Dr. Hardie Neil. Dr. J. G. Macdonald was elected president. Dr. Neil said that a suitable person chosen by. the committee in Invercargill could receive from three to six months’ instruction in lip-reading in Auckland and the executive of the league was prepared to provide the initial expenses of the cominittee.