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Received my authorization!


Mary Featherston

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Next step:  schedule surgery.  Oh, you all here are WELL aware of how exciting this is!

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Hi @Jewel - the voice mail said the schedule's not open till June.  I need to confirm today.  I still find it sadly ironic that a person scheduling a cochlear implant surgery has to do it on the phone.  But I'm going to hope that they hired someone who can speak clearly and loud enough.

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@Mary Featherston

 

Check out the free InnoCaption app.  You can read what they say and speak for yourself.  

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Thanks, @Mary Beth - I had looked at the ClearCaptions app but that requires that I have people call a different phone number and seemed impractical for a lot of calls for that reason.  I'll check out InnoCaption.

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@Mary Featherston

They told me to call to schedule my surgery too and I asked them how am I to do that when I'm deaf. I requested an email address, which they provided and so I'm able to keep in contact with that point person via email. 

Sometimes hearing people forget the obvious, like the time I used we chat for customer service and I explained that I am using the Web chat as I don't hear well over the phone. The customer service rep proceeded to call me on the phone on the grounds that he preferred to speak to me over the phone directly. I only know this as I had to ask someone to take the call for me. Sometimes people don't think. 

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@Jewel  that's one of my biggest frustrations.  People may mean well, but it's head-bangingly frustrating for the deaf or HoH person.

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@Mary Featherston

 

InnoCaption will let you use your own cellphone and calling out will be easy.  Receiving InnoCaption calls will require a different number though.

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2 hours ago, Mary Featherston said:

@Jewel  that's one of my biggest frustrations.  People may mean well, but it's head-bangingly frustrating for the deaf or HoH person.

I am totally with you there! It still drives me crazy when I get an important call and the person has a strong accent. I tell them I am hard of hearing but sometimes it doesn’t help. I know these people mean well as well. But man!! 

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Yikes, I just confirmed my surgery date:  April 13!  My surgeon was booked till June but had a date open up so.....heeeeere we go!

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@Jewel  Yes - I'm getting that on Monday too.  My pre-op checkup and the vaccine.

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@Mary Featherston

Wow! Everything so quickly! I guess you only need one vaccine. I need two, to be taken eight weeks apart. 

Where are you doing your surgery? 

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@Jewel, you already have one ear implanted, right?  I emailed and asked the nurse to confirm that I only need one.  I'm quite sure I remember her telling me that last appointment.  Surgery will be at the University of Minnesota - they have a big building on the edge of campus that includes the clinics (where I see the audiologist and the doctor) and an onsite surgery center. 

 

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@Mary Featherston

No, I haven't had surgery yet. Although both ears qualify for CIs my surgeon only recommended I do one since I can still hear a bit from my left one; plus I'm self pay.  So I will be getting my first CI in August. 

My surgical package said I ought to get two vaccines which is what the CDC recommends. Thanks to my fellow Hear Peers, I found out that CDC recommends a certain order so that's how I'm doing my vaccines.  

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@Mary Beth and @Jewel  - I went to the CDC website and read the whole entry.  It says to use either vaccine or both, and that the primary reason for the increased risk is that people who need CIs are more likely to have anatomical irregularities that would make you/us susceptible.  In fact, come to think of it, once you have an implant that may constitute an anatomical irregularity itself.  An operating room is a sterile place, you shouldn't be picking up a bacterial infection there.  My surgeon confirmed that I can proceed with the Prevnar 13 as long as I follow up with Pneumovax 23 afterward.

I'm inclined to trust the medical staff.

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Always trust your CI team.  I did it exactly like you mentioned.  Prevnar 13 prior to surgery and Pneumovax 23 post surgery,

 

Some CI surgeons require both before surgery.  It gets complicated if a candidate takes the Pneumovax 23 first because of a required long wait before the Prevnar 13 when taken in that order.

 

There have been members of HPs who ended up with a long delay due to that.

 

Glad your plan is all working out for you.

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i, too, am having an implant done April 13, must be a lot of cancellations because of it being Friday the 13th:)

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@Jackie Erickson - I am perfectly willing to benefit from other people's superstitions!  - Good luck with yours, we can be recovery twins.

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Thanks, @Kara of Canada!  I had my pre-op checkup yesterday.  Had my first EKG (and boy is that fun when they tear the little electrodes off).  My last step prior to the surgery is a phone appointment with the anesthesia nurse, which they insisted had to be on the phone.  This should be interesting.  They KNOW I'm a CI patient, so I hope the nurse knows to speak clearly and loudly.

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Boy some people are really forgetful! Or outright ignorant. Depends on the person I guess. My anaesthesiologist was really good. She showed me her name tag and we talked for a few minutes before heading into the OR. Where as the nurse says to me in her small mouse voice what surgery are we doing today? I didn’t catch her name or much else. I didn’t care. At this point I had three others around me who knew what was going on. Including two surgeons. Plus a nice BIG arrow on my face to show which side they intended to do. I get they need to make sure everyone knows what’s going on but come on what surgery? Crazy people. 

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