Deaf Pātea man says cochlear implant has been 'life-changing'

Bruce Phillips, pictured with wife Karen, has had his hearing restored thanks to cochlear implants. Photo / Supplied

Pātea resident Bruce Phillips has had his hearing restored thanks to increased government funding for cochlear implants.

Phillips, a 68-year-old retired greenkeeper, had been profoundly deaf for the past decade and had spent the past three years on the waiting list for an implant, which is the only viable treatment to restore severe hearing loss.

With Phillips' three children living in Palmerston North, New Plymouth and Queensland, being able to communicate with them only through text and email had put a strain on his relationships.

But now, with his cochlear implant, Phillips is back to living his life to the fullest and couldn't be happier with the outcome.

"It's life-changing and a blessing - bloody marvellous really," he said.

In last year's government budget, an extra $28 million was allocated over four years to give deaf Kiwis the ability to hear again.

This allowed the Southern Cochlear Implant Programme (SCIP) to allocate a total of 60 implants this year, up from the 20 it was able to allocate previously.

The SCIP is one of only two cochlear implant providers in Aotearoa and provides people south of Taupō, who are in need of cochlear implants, with assessments, surgery, adjustments and rehabilitation.

SCIP chief executive Neil Heslop said the organisation had already performed 36 adult operations this year.

"It's brilliant that the extra funding has enormously impacted so many people and their families already," Heslop said.

Like Phillips, the majority of people on the waiting list for cochlear implants are not born deaf but have had hearing loss slowly worsen over time.

A 2016 Deloitte report estimated the total cost on the New Zealand economy as a result of hearing loss at $957.3m, with 58 per cent of that being due to a lack of productivity.

"The cochlear implant technology improves their lives immeasurably and that means there's an excellent social, community and economic return on the Government's investment," Heslop said.

The World Health Organisation estimates that governments can expect returns of nearly US$16 ($24) for every US$1 invested in hearing care.

As for Phillips, he's just happy he can hear the world around him again, although the implant has taken some getting used to.

"When the team switched my implant on, human voices sounded like the Daleks on Doctor Who - really echoey, and high and squeaky - but I didn't mind as I could hear again."

Now, months later and after regular follow-up sessions with the SCIP post-implant rehabilitation service, he has adjusted to his implant and is amazed at the difference it's made to even little things such as walking his dog.

"She's 10 years old and I had never heard her, and I could hear her claws tapping along the path."

March 3 is World Hearing Day.