Is the cochlear implant a “solution”?

Charlie wrote a very good article on the issue of giving a cochlear implant to a deaf person to ‘fix’ their hearing loss.

Tina didn’t consider herself ‘broken’, until she reached a point where she couldn’t cope any longer, and looked for other options to help her manage her ability to communicate with the hearing people all around her every day. She had to find a way to communicate with more ease than struggling to understand what was being said with guesswork and lip reading. Struggling with everyday communication is extremely tiring. When you have no choice, it’s even more tiring and it just becomes a drag to communicate with anyone, as you ask for yet another repeat.

Her choice was an implant, as she wanted to start living her life again – right here, right now. Other people’s choices might be learning or using sign language, resignation and acceptance, or waiting for effective drugs, stem cells,nanotechnology, neural implants or infra-red light based cochlear implants.

At the end of the day, it is the individual’s decision to accept a cochlear implant and to make it work successfully, no one else’s. A deaf person’s personal choice is just that, and should be respected.

The Guardian: Not all deaf people want to be ‘fixed’.