Plea to halt the town hall bailiffs
Millions never bother to wear hearing aids that cost NHS fortune
ONE in five partially deaf people who has a hearing aid that costs the NHS hundreds of pounds does not bother to wear it, a study has suggested.
Research shows 20 per cent of those given the expensive devices simply discard them.
Many are put off by difficulty in handling the aids or because they are not convinced of the benefits of wearing them.
A further 30 per cent with hearing problems use aids they have been supplied with only “some” of the time.
Urgent
Now calls are being made to encourage greater use of the devices, which cost the NHS around £400 for a pair.
Professor Kevin Munro, a co-author of the study, said the results of the research highlighted an urgent need to address why aids are so under-used.
He said: “Hearing loss is the most common sensory problem in the world, experienced by one in six people in the UK.
“It has a well-known association with cognitive decline and dementia and as hearing aids are the primary treatment they can have huge benefit to wearers.
“The NHS is the largest purchaser of hearing aids in the world, so knowing that they are valued by many is great but there is room for improvement.”
An estimated 10 million Britons have some hearing loss, a figure which is likely to rise to 14.4 million by 2031.Around 80 per cent of those who have aids got them from the NHS.
Hearing tests cost the Health Service around £50 while a test and fitting of one aid costs about £300. Fitting a second adds another £100 to the bill.
Those who decide to buy their own aids privately can pay as much as £3,000 for a pair.
The study by University of Manchester researchers looked into how many people who had been issued with NHS hearing aids use them and why they struggle to if not. It found only
F-35s on board as HMS Queen Elizabeth set sail, above
THE Dambusters have landed on the HMS Queen Elizabeth warship to join the Royal Navy and begin sea trials.
F-35 Lightning jets from the 617 Squadron arrived on the 65,000-ton vessel which left the Portsmouth Naval Base working off the south coast.
The aircraft that landed on board will be the same that will sail with the carrier next year on its maiden deployment.
The crew will link up with US, European and other Nato allies.
Commander Mark Sparrow, of 617 Squadron, said: “We are excited to be on board the carrier and we have been training hard to be here. This is the first half of those with the devices used them most of the time.
Prof Munro said reasons for failing to use them regularly included “lack of perceived benefit” and “handling difficulties”.
He stressed that getting used to an aid when younger makes it easier for people in later life.
The study was based on a survey of 16,000 people in Wales but Prof Munro said there was no reason to think the situation was much different elsewhere.
Lead author Professor Harvey Dillon said: “It’s imperative that more research is done to understand why non-use can set in so quickly and devise efficient procedures to prevent it.”
The study results have been published in the International Journal of Audiology. time the ship’s operational squadron has embarked and worked together.
“The F-35 brings next generation capability to UK Defence through its ability to find, destroy or avoid enemy air defences and enemy aircraft whilst gathering intelligence data.”
The original squadron was saluted for its heroics in the Second World War.
Commander Ed Phillips, Commander Air on board HMS Queen Elizabeth, added: “Today is a significant day for HMS Queen Elizabeth on the road to
THE use of “heavy handed” bailiffs by councils needs to be curbed, the Chancellor has been told.
A cross-party group of MPs and peers has written to Rishi Sunak calling for a Debt Management Bill to end the “wasteful” practice in the public sector.
Bailiffs have been “widely abandoned” by the private sector. But in 2018-19 councils called them in over 2.6 million debts but only recovered 27p in every £1.
Council tax enforcement is set to restart next month after the lockdown.
Ex-Cabinet minister Baroness Morgan said given the impact of Covid-19 on those in the red it was vital to “bring debt collection practices rapidly up to speed”.