News

CHHA is pleased to announce that one more branch has been added to the CHHA Family. The CHHA-York Branch was granted its charter as of December 14, 2009. » more...

Advanced Bionics is pleased to announce that it has been acquired by Sonova, the global leader in hearing healthcare systems. As part of the acquisition, AB will be combining with Phonak, the leading provider of miniature hearing aids, FM and wireless communication systems. Like Phonak, Advanced Bionics will remain an independent division, and the two brands will work together under their parent company, Sonova. Combined, we offer 75 years of success in bringing state-of-the-art hearing devices to people around the world.

It is an exciting time for AB recipients and their families. This important acquisition will bring you more opportunities to hear your best. Leveraging the trust and respect of the Phonak brand together with our own long-standing track record and powerful portfolio of intellectual property rights, AB will now be poised to build the smallest and easiest-to-use sound processor in the cochlear implant industry. Backed by 60 years of innovation, Sonova lends the qualities that have been driving their success over the last decade: global sales coverage, outstanding customer service, an international supply chain, and a dedication to innovation.

You can also rest assured that there will be no interruption in your service. We’re still AB and offer all the same services that you’ve come to expect from us.

For more information, please visit www.AdvancedBionics.com/AB-Sonova-R/.

Nominations are open for the President and National Board members of CHHA to serve a three-year term. Nominees should be dedicated to serving hard of hearing persons and should possess good leadership skills and managerial abilities. Nominees must be familiar with electronic communication in order to communicate by e-mail with other board members across Canada. Elected nominees must be willing to make a significant time commitment and must be willing to assume specific responsibilities, such as an executive position or committee portfolio. Elected nominees will take office on June 6, 2010 following the CHHA Annual General Meeting in Sudbury, Ontario. » more...

The Canadian Transportation Agency (CTA) has produced two implementation guides to help Canadian air carriers meet two provisions in the Code of Practice: Aircraft Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities, which are applicable to fixed wing aircraft with 30 or more passenger seats.

These guides address:
• space for service dogs onboard aircraft (section 2.6), and
• tactile row markers (section 2.7).

The guides were developed following consultations with organizations including the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association's National Committee on Transportation. The guides also include important information for passengers with disabilities, travel agencies, tour operators, and Canadian aircraft manufacturers.

Feel free to read the CTA Advisory Bulletin in its entirity. » more...

With my new-found interest in blogging, I had recently started a blog (http://www.storyanalytics.com) where I had started to write about things I’m passionate about, share my knowledge and thoughts, and learn in the process.

So, earlier this month, when I heard about an event called the Blogathon (http://www.blogathon.org) where participating bloggers around the world commit to blogging for 24 hours straight, writing one post every half hour while representing a charity of their choice in an attempt to raise awareness and collect pledges, I was hooked. Having only recently found the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association and having interacted with some members of the hard of hearing community, CHHA was the first charity that came to my mind.

And so all the stars appeared to be aligned to combine doing something I love (write), for a cause I love (needs for the hard of hearing), while having fun along the way! Obviously it did come with one sacrifice – sleep. Forty nine posts had to be written, one post every half an hour from 6 AM PDT July 25th to 6 AM PDT July 26th.

Vancouver had a large contingent of committed bloggers, each representing their cause of choice, led by popular Vancouver blogger Rebecca Bollwitt known here as Miss604 (http://www.miss604.com/blogathon), and through whom I found out about this event.

Local Vancouver firms such as Workspace, Dairy Queen, Developmental Disabilities Association and so on were kind enough to sponsor us with venue, lunch, dinner, refreshments etc., and cheer us on throughout the event, with local area newspapers like the Vancouver Sun, Georgia Straight etc covering the event as well.

Several great non-profit organizations such as the Union Gospel Mission, United Way, BC Cancer Society, BC Children’s Hospital, Vancouver Public Space Network, Canadian Hard of Hearing Association etc., just to name a few, were represented. The full list of bloggers and their causes can be found at blogathon’s site: http://www.blogathon.org/list.php

Being a Business Systems Analyst, I had originally intended to blog about topics in my line of work, but seeing the support I received from the hard of hearing community when I informed people about the event, I decided to feature members from CHHA and Hearing Loss Association of America in my blog posts as well, in an attempt to raise awareness about hard of hearing.

My only regret is not planning this a bit more in advance and getting in touch with more people earlier. My audiologist from Island Hearing Services who had been on vacation found out about the event only later, but was kind enough to sponsor the cause as well.

A big learning experience for me from this exercise was leveraging upon the power of social media in raising awareness and forging connections. In the span of 24 hours, I became an avid twitter user and a blogger and made connections with bloggers, writers, IT professionals as well as many talented people from the hard of hearing community in the US and Canada. More details and the full list of my posts can be found in my blog http://www.storyanalytics.com.

Overall, it was an amazing experience and which I definitely look forward to doing again next year! » more...