How They Did It

Hospital:
Registered Nurse

PROBLEM: Registered nurse Judy Blalock began first to notice a slight hearing loss 10 years ago. At first, she minimized it and felt that she would get along fine if she got close to the person who was talking and concentrated on what they were saying. However, her hearing loss became progressive and at her family's urging, she sought a hearing health exam five years ago and was fitted with hearing aids.

But it was clear to Judy and her colleagues at Eastside General Hospital that hearing aids don't work well in all situations-particularly for staff meetings and on the phone. When her unit was short-staffed and she had to fill-in to provide clinical care, Judy discovered she wasn't able to function as well as she did 20 years ago. She--and the hospital--were concerned about the well-being of patients as well as Judy's own safety.

BACKGROUND: Judy started out at Eastside General as a floor nurse rotating on different wards including OB-GYN, pediatrics, and critical care; at mid-career, she worked her way through a master's degree. Now, at 50, she is in a management position, head nurse on the psychiatric unit of the same hospital in which she began her career. Much of her work time is spent on the phone, in meetings and completing paperwork.

SOLUTION: Judy contacted the hospital's human services department and asked for a consult with their ADA accommodations specialist, Daryl. Daryl is a professional member of Self-Help for Hard of Hearing People (SHHH) and was familiar with hearing assistance technologies through the SHHH National Center on Assistive Technology. He helped Judy develop a checklist of work-related challenges. Then they addressed each one individually.

He advised the hospital to purchase an amplified stethoscope ($500). With it, Judy was able to take blood pressures again. To facilitate the group-therapy sessions she led, Daryl recommended that she situate the chairs so that she stood with her back to the window, with natural light serving to illuminate all the patients faces to help her read visual cues easily. He also suggested that she structure the group so that participants would raise their hands and be called upon before speaking, allowing her to focus on each patient one at a time.

Daryl suggested that she contact her audiologist about obtaining a special FM system that utilizes a miniature receiver connected to her hearing aid. The system, which uses a microphone to pick up speech and then transmits it to Judy's hearing aid, is more effective than the hearing aid alone and is useful in staff meetings as well as patient groups. The compact system cost $2,000 and Judy was able to convince the hospital to purchase it for her as a reasonable accommodation. To improve Judy's phone communication, which takes place over a complex digital phone set, the hospital relied on the phone manufacturer's recommendation to add on a simple in-line amplifier that cost $40.

Like other nurses who become late-deafened, Judy had been considering taking an early retirement. But with the assistive devices, she feels she can perform her duties confidently, and has elected to remain in her position. In addition, she has been forthcoming about recognizing her limitations--for example, she must still depend on the staff to alert her to sounds that occur at distant ends of the hospital unit. Meanwhile, the hospital believes it is fortunate to retain Judy on the job since it would take a great deal of time, cause much disruption--and cost them more money--to replace her.