Wallace is 67 and he works as a nutrition and food services manager for an alcohol and drug treatment centre on Vancouver Island. He manages a staff of 12 people to provide food services for about 100 inpatients. As part of his job, he needs to consult with patients about their dietary and nutritional needs.

“Clear and concise communication is a must in an, at times, noisy environment,” he shares. “Progressive hearing loss had begun to limit my effectiveness within the workplace. Constantly asking others to repeat themselves or crowding in to hear what is being said can be very uncomfortable. Participating in open meetings was becoming very difficult if I was unable to follow the conversation or discussion. My overall effectiveness as a manager was declining.”

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Terry works as a bus driver, transporting people with disabilities to and from hospital appointments. He loves his job, however, his employer determined that it was unsafe for him to continue driving with his hearing loss.

Looking to continue driving, Terry went to a hearing clinic for help. With the prohibitive cost of hearing aids, his audiologist referred him to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for help funding the hearing aids he needs for work.

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Sandra is looking for part-time work as an online ESL tutor. She has been receiving training through WorkBC Employment Services and is volunteering to get some experience in the field.

Recently, Sandra, who is in her 60’s and has multiple disabilities, found she was having a hard time hearing people on her computer during online courses, although she initially attributed it to technical issues. Eventually, a hearing test revealed that she has hearing loss, and she was referred to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for hearing aids to help her in her training and employment goals.

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Stephanie works in pediatrics, supporting children with serious illnesses.

“I have moderate to severe hearing loss which made my workday challenging,” she shares. “I rely on lip-reading, and when we are to wear masks at work, not only is the sound of speech muffled, but I am also unable to lip-read.”

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Colin’s work involves a lot of meetings, taking place online, over the phone, and in-person on construction sites. However, he has hearing loss in both ears, which was affecting his ability to communicate during meetings.

His audiologist referred him to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for help funding the hearing aids he needed for work.

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Jean-Luc works as a ramp agent at an airport. His job involves loading and unloading planes, and communicating with pilots to dispatch airplanes safely and efficiently.

“I am hard of hearing in both ears,” he shares. “This can make hearing speech in loud environments at the airport difficult.”

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Gloria is studying web development and design, learning everything from coding to Photoshop as she looks to pursue a career in the field.

“I have profound hearing loss due to work related conditions,” she shares. “As I’m unable to properly hear individuals in surroundings with competing noise, it’s important that I’m able to be self-sufficient with a career that allows me to do much of my work and communication online and remotely.”

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Neel is employed in the insurance industry as a Disability Claim Consultant. His job involves coaching and mentoring new case managers once they complete their formal training.

“My hearing loss made it difficult to interact with clients professionally,” he shares. “It was difficult to understand what they were saying to me.”

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Through WorkBC Assistive Technology Services, Roxanne, who works in childcare, received new hearing aids.

“For the first time in 15 years, I have two identical hearing aids providing me with 360 degree sound experiences and sound clarity. I am able to hear the child in my care from anywhere in the house, as well as cars or people that are not even in my vision yet. This gives me the confidence to know that I am able to provide better safety and care for the child in my care when we are out of the house. This is all thanks to the Assistive Technology Services Program approving me for funding. The application was straightforward and thorough, and the correspondence with the case managers were pleasant and informative,” she shares.

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Kelly works at a shipyard. He has hearing loss and needs to wear hearing aids.

When he needed new hearing aids, his audiologist referred him to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for funding help. He applied and was quickly approved.

“It was able to supply me with some funding in help in paying for a new set of hearing aids that were needed for my hearing loss,” he shares.

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