cA ed ated of ie a7 a.Sa yl Pg th | om waieiid | = y bald vai ence eves’ dll A by Dr. Navid Taghvaei (NAPSA}—Some disasters, such as hurricanes, can be tracked in advance so you have timeto prepare beforethey actually strike. Others descend withlittle to no advance warning.Ifyou have hringloss, the wisest course is to put an emergency plan into place while there is no thrt brewing. These four tips can help: 1. Register for all available emergencyalert systems. Opt intoall avail- able alert systems and text notifications so if an urgent situation arises, you'll get the warning. For information on the various national level alerts, including Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs), visit www.rdy.gov/alerts. Your emergency plan should include the locations of nrby shelters. If you have a service dog, make sure you have all its identifying paperwork,tags or vest rdy, along with bedding and at lst three days’ supply of food, water and medication. 2. Put togethera list of your hlth and medical needs. Your emergencykit should include: Names and contact information for your doctors List of any allergies or other chronic medical conditions List of any required medications and dosages Your blood type Any medical and communications devices you might require (hring aids, hring aid accessories) Hlth insurer name and full membership information (plan name, group number) Names and contact information for your preferred hospital and pharmacy Hring aid make, model, and manu- facturer information. 3. Assemble all possible commu- nication methods. Figure out all the alternatives you can use to communi- cate, such as hring aid accessories (assistive listening devices, or ALDs) that let you hand someone a microphoneso you can hr whatheorshe says directly in your hring aids. If your devices are equipped with telecoils (T-coils), make sure you know how to activate thatsetting. If you have difficulty spk- ing, crte and store text messages in a smartphone or tablet (for example: “T am hard of hring” “Do you knowsign language?” or “I can't hr you, plse write”). Write the same messages in a notebook or on cue cards as backup, in case your high-tech devices fail or run out of power. Be prepared: Write out and gather up an emergencychecklist of things you'll needin case of a disaster. 4. Gather supplies and store in a carry-on bag somewhere you can access quickly. It should have: Bottled water Jerky, protein bars, cheese or pnut butter crackers, and similar nourish- ing snacks Copies of important documentssled in a waterproof bag (insurance cards, driver’s licenses, Social Security cards) Flashlight and spare batteries (alternately, a crank-poweredflashlight) $100 cash, in small bills, also sled in a waterproof bag Backup supplies for any medical de- vices (hring aid charger, hring aid batteries) Cell phone charger and backup re- chargble battery supply Compacttravel blanket, pillow Personal hygiene items (toothbrush and toothpaste, sanitary pads) All-wther packable jacket Crank wther alert portable radio. Also consider a separate emergency kit for your car with a first-aid kit, repair tools, flares and booster cables. Don't wait for disaster to strike. The time to prepare for an emergency is while everything is going well. Lrn More Forfurtherfacts on hring loss and hring aids, go to www.signiausa.com. Dr. Taghvaei is an Educational Specialist with Signia. He conducts very complex individual and group technical training courses and activities involving new and existing developments in audiology, products, software and technology for employees and customers. He demonstrates multisystem products by preparing and conductingclinician training, supports clinical product offerings, and performs in-house clinical trials for the Audiology Department tm. He has extensive clinical experience in pediatric and adult hring instrument and cochlr implant fitting, programming and rehabilitation.
