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A cochlear implant is not about perfect hearing. For many Australians, it is about connection.
“A life of abject silence and associated loneliness and frustration can be replaced with genuine human connection. I can hear. I can talk to my wife, my kids, my grandkids.”
These are the words of Michael Kerr from Pennant Hills, a member of Deafness Forum Australia’s Lived Experience Advisory Group.
Michael Kerr, DFA Lived Experience Advisory Group Member
Due to a suspected damaged auditory nerve, Michael has achieved around 50 percent hearing with his cochlear implant. He is the first to admit it is not perfect. The sound is synthesised. It is different. It requires adjustment.
But in his words, it “beats silence.”
For Michael, and for thousands of Australians, a cochlear implant is not about perfect hearing. It is about connection. It is about conversation at the dinner table. It is about hearing a grandchild’s voice.
While the internal implant is designed to last long term, the external sound processor requires replacement as technology evolves. Yet Australians over 65 currently have no dedicated public funding pathway for these essential upgrades.
That gap directly affects people like Michael.
On 25 February, to coincide with International Cochlear Implant Day, Deafness Forum Australia launched a public petition calling on the Federal Government to expand hearing services and fund sound processor upgrades for Australians aged over 65.
At the time of writing, more than 750 Australians have already signed the petition, thanks in large part to people like Michael who have generously shared their stories to encourage others to take action.
Because connection should not depend on age.
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