“Marlene is a 63 year old female with a longstanding history of hearing loss. Marlene experienced recurrent ear infections since early childhood, which exacerbated her existing hearing loss. She had surgery in both ears during her teenage years, but it unfortunately didn’t help improve her hearing. She experienced great difficulty at school and was ridiculed because of the hearing loss. Marlene eventually dropped out of school as things became too much for her and she was unable to keep up with the school work.
Marlene later on got married to a very supportive gentleman who helped her obtain a hearing aid from a public health hospital. Unfortunately the hearing aid broke a few years later and the hospital was unable to repair it, nor could they provide her with a replacement. During that time her husband sadly passed away and she was subsequently forced to move in with a friend. The relocation was extremely difficult as she was unable to communicate with her friend or any other loved ones. They would either need to message her or write things down in order to communicate with her. She soon started isolating and becoming severely depressed as she was no longer able to have meaningful conversations with those who mattered most.
On the 15th Oct 2024 Marlene was fitted with a pair of donated hearing aids. She is now able to hear speech and has access to important environmental sounds. She is finally able to hold a conversation with her friend and loved ones after many years.
Marlene has a follow up appointment soon. We are very keen to hear how the first few weeks have been going.”