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My mother, in a nursing home, needs a hearing aid. She takes it out and puts it away with no memory where it is or that it's out. We have gone through multiple styles of aids and strategies for staff. We found out they were worried about her losing yet another one, so were keeping it locked up and us having to tell them if we were going to call or visit - not okay with us because she needs to hear staff and have more than superficial conversations. Deafness is more isolating than blindness!!! Some staff have taken to writing rather than speaking, and you can imagine how far that goes in terms of meaningful time.


So my sister was finally able to go into her room last week, and had ordered another hearing aid and all was well with that. They then instituted a care plan so that an RN was to check that she has it in every three hours. So now a week in, and it’s gone again.


I’m sure there are many families who have had this frustrating problem, and I fear there’s no solution, but looking to see if there’s something we have not thought of.


Thanks for any suggestions.

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Ask your HA provider about hearing aid clips, they are devices that attach to the HA and clip to your clothes or a headband.
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Chris52 Jan 2021
Thanks! I fear that if the clips can be removed, she would do so, and then put the whole thing “away.” Still, it would create more bulk and might be easier to find.
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This is so reminiscent of when my kiddoes had mouth retainers--they'd take them out at lunch and forget to take them back off their lunch trays....nothing EVER worked, except writing in black sharpie on their arm "RETAINER?" and altho that seemed a little demeaning to them, they stopped forgetting their $300 retainers.

Someone posted a few days ago the idea that you connect a VERY thin line (like fishing line or clear sewing thread) onto the aids and connect THOSE to clips of some kind and then to the shirt of the wearer---then maybe ha's are at least mixed in with the laundry...

They also make 'device finders' (like the Amazon TILE) but they are bulky and designed for wallets, phones, etc.

If I were techie at all I'd design something like that, but tiny enough to go on a hearing aid and have it trackable. It would no doubt be expensive--but I know how much we paid for DH's hearing aids and I'd HAPPILY have paid $1000 more to put some kind of tracker on them.
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Chris52 Jan 2021
I had to laugh at the retainer analogy. Yes, how many besides my daughter’s were put on the cafeteria tray? And once she managed to swallow it!
The clip idea might be worth a try since it would make it more noticeable in trash or laundry.
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Here's a bunch of links & articles on the subject of loss prevention for hearing aids:

https://www.facebook.com/ItsHearOfficial/

http://www.getsafensound.com/

http://earstay.com/

https://shop.hearinglink.org/hear-ear----hearing-aid-securing-clip-10-p.asp

https://adcohearing.com/collections/ear-care-hearing-aid-supplies-clips-and-loss-prevention

https://www.clearliving.com/hearing/hearing-aids/best-loss-prevention-clips/

Good luck!
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Chris52 Jan 2021
Thanks! I’ll check these out.
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Been down this road! Mom moved into MC mostly "able", but she was already misplacing her hearing aid and/or forgetting to replace the battery. Before the move, she had misplaced it, some visiting relatives helped find it, but I think what they found was the previous one, that she had bitten/broken (funny part of that is she got so mad at dad for trying to bite her hearing aid, then she did it herself!) Anyway, the provider set her up with another. During the move, YB found one in her bedding, which is likely the REAL missing one. At some point the provider set it up so she had 2, but I think her hearing was already shot in that ear (otosclerosis is a progressive condition, where eventually the hearing is lost.)

Anyway, despite asking them to replace battery every 2 weeks, it wasn't being done. When I'd visit, I'd have to go search her room (on bedside table, on floor under bed, etc) or check and replace the battery. Despite the annoyance, we were managing... until it went through the laundry.

Previous provider was not responding to text, calls (mail box full), so it took me some time to find another. He set her up with a pair, both for the same ear, so we'd have a spare. It was just 3 years, so her extra insurance covered most of the cost. These were rechargeable, so I gave the charger to the nurse - take it at night, charge it and give it to her in the morning. That didn't last a few months, when it went AWOL (probably like the retainers, out with the meal trash, as she kept taking it out.) From then on, any time she took it out, the nurse would take it away. Sure, that protects the hearing aid, but like most "activity", use it or lose it. By not having it, the loss became more pronounced. It was so sad to have another resident tell me she thought mom was just rude or something, because she wouldn't respond. I told her mom had hearing loss, but she likely wouldn't remember it later. I did get mom a Boogie Board (LCD tablet you can "write" on with a stencil, and erase - saves finding a scrap of paper!) Staff even liked having that. Mom could often figure out what you were saying/asking, if it was minimal or you could pantomime, but anything longer, best to write it down.

I think the ideas of having a fishing line, or some stronger thin thread attached might have helped - like having eyeglass cords, but attached to the back shoulder or neck area, where she can't reach. Since it would likely have to be pinned there, attach a label as well, to help prevent it going through the laundry. It would dangle when removed, so the thread/line would have to be strong enough not to break. I do see on search for hearing aid cords, they do sell them, some which just go behind the head, attaching both together or with clips. I would have tried them, had I known they existed! I'd thought about those "tiles", but they seem too big... however, one site suggested this:

"Tether and tile
A solution that’s not as popular but very effective is connecting a tether and tile to the hearing aids. This method will help locate the hearing aid when the tile is paired to a smart phone. Most hearing aids can be modified to accommodate the tether. The tether when attached to clothing, provides added security."

So instead of or in addition to a tag to prevent laundering (label with name too, for easier ID), you could attach the tile to the tether, making it easier to locate.

Some or all of these ideas might help, but you'd still be reliant on staff to be more diligent.
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Chris52 Jan 2021
Your experiences sound very much like ours. I think some sort of tether sounds like the best bet (especially paired to a smart phone), so that it’s in as much as possible. One of our biggest challenges (going on for years!) is helping the staff to understand how important it is that she hear throughout the day, not just when they want to ask or tell her something specific. She is intelligent and needs genuine interaction.
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Ask staff to remover her garbage can from her room. She needs hearing aides to keep the sense of hearing so putting them in only when you visit isn't helping her. Maybe staff needs to secure her hearing aides and put them in when they go into her room or interact with her. After the interaction, ask staff remove the hearing aides and secure them. Bit of a pain for staff, but at least the staff will know where the hearing aides are.
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Chris52 Jan 2021
They have tried the “securing” route, and then that’s where the hearing aids stay, secure, unless one of us asks them to put them in for a phone call, or in the past, a visit. As I know you recognize, she needs to have them in consistently so that she can hear sounds in general, other residents, and when staff pops in to help her out. However, staff is not going to go get the hearing aid every time they come in to clean her, pick up/bring laundry, drop her mail off, etc. Those brief encounters comprise a great deal of her interaction.
I hope I don’t sound ungracious. I am thinking about every suggestion, so thanks!
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Sopened at the facility is taking them
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disgustedtoo Feb 2021
Your typos are bewildering. This isn't the first, not likely the last. Even with a phone Spell Mangler, that "Sopened" isn't even a real word!

Assumption is you are saying "Someone at the facility is taking them."

If this is so, to what end? Most hearing aids are geared for the person (my mother's were molded to her ear.), or their particular hearing loss, so what are they going to do with it?

Most hearing aids are lost or misplaced by the person. My mother misplaced hers MULTIPLE times when still living ALONE in her own place, even BEFORE dementia. So, who was taking them, Casper the Friendly Ghost??? (same for other items that she couldn't find, *someone* was taking/stealing them!)

When visiting with her or taking her out to eat, I have WATCHED her take it out and wrap it in a tissue or napkin. Those with dementia/cognitive disorders are more apt to misplace, lose or throw away the hearing aid. Those who are just older may put it down somewhere and forget where they put it down. That happens to the best of us (how many times have you put something down, not in it's "usual" place and then spent time searching for it?)
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Do her hearing aids link to a phone with a "Find" feature?
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Chris52 Feb 2021
I’ll look into this, thanks.
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** Hearing Aid Retention Clip for BTE / RIC - Binaural, Gray Color (oaktreeproducts.com)

Google on this and your searching for hearing aids will be in the past.
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Are there any headphone types that might work and are too big to lose? Could you rig up something like on kids' mittens that is bright and noticeable and keeps them together. Thin wire around the earring wires perhaps with a bright knit ball and on a knit cloth that hangs over the back? WE gave up, but actually she was still able to communicate without them.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
I think it does need to be something quite visible and have a substantial part to it. At the same time, she may well not remember what it’s for and this may lead to greater efforts to remove. It’s certainly worth a try. She just uses one aid (other ear is totally dear), so will need to clip somewhere.
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There is money to be made if this issue could be blown up for the companies and tech types to notice.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Yes!
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Oh wow! Did you bring back the nightmare. In over the course of two months dad lost three hearing aids. Getting them replaced, the cost and communicating with him was stressful for everyone.The main problem was taking the mask off an on. They were over the ear and would just flip off. The staff at long care could never find them and said that the cleaners probably vacuumed them up. So we had a mold made for one ear. It was more expensive but it stays in more securely. We got two small distinctive looking bowls, they look like blue pineapples. We made it part of his routine to put the hearing aid in it before bed or if he is having a shower. He has misplaced it twice but was able to find it. I wish they made them a bright fluorescent colour so they can be easier to spot. Good luck to you.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thanks. Colored would certainly be better!
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My Mom was in hospice and HA were lost. I contacted her Dr and she recommended 2 things

1. A used hearing aid inside of a custom ear mold, attached to a tether. OR
2. Headphones and an amplifier that went around her neck.

Mom said she could hear fine... and she could. She passed about a month later. I think God gave us that special time together as she could hear and remember things that she couldn't before.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thank you! I’m glad you had that time when you could communicate. It’s worth so much.
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This is soooo common in nursing homes and AL facilities.  Hearing aides, eye glasses and false teeth are nearly impossible to keep track of.  They take them off/out and lay them down, they take other peoples, they throw them away...etc.  There was one case where one resident took out their hearing aid and handed it to another resident and they ate it.  It is crazy and the nursing staff can't stay on top of every move every resident makes. 

There are a few simple things like putting the glasses on a necklace with a big name tag on it and having a second pair made with a cheap frame that you keep just in case. Maybe the hearing aides can be attached to a brightly colored head set.  I would ask her doctor about that.  That would make them more visible and less likely to get tossed.  I don't have any suggestions for teeth. LOL  There is nothing more disgusting than one resident putting another residents teeth in their mouth, but it happens.

In the beginning it is maddening because there is so much out of your control.  You have to do the best you can and know that she is safe, she's warm, she is fed.  The other stuff is just a continuous puzzle that has to be worked. 

Good Luck Chris52.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thank you!
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My Alzheimer's-ridden mom lived with us; she hid things everywhere. It was very frustrating to play hide and go seek many days, especially when I had to go to work. (Hubby watched her then.) I know there are GPS-like devices to help locate keys, for example, although we've never used it. Maybe that would help.

I even wrote a book about our travails taking care of my mom called, "My Mother Has Alzheimer's and My Dog Has Tapeworms: A Caregiver's Tale." In it, I mention that my mom once hid her purse in a drawer, then locked the drawer, (Hubby installed a lock, at her paranoia-induced request), and then she forgot where she hid her key! She was uncomfortable with her hearing aides, and she just refused to wear them. She'd often mis-hear things, but as long as I spoke directly to her, it was do-able. Good luck.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thanks. I think I’d enjoy your book.
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My mom went thru 3 hearing aids. One got crushed on floor when we didn't realize where it was. And 2 she put in her mouth and chewed them, at different times! Blessedly, both times I was there and heard the horrible crunching sounds and got them out of her mouth mostly-- especially the battery which is the most dangerous to ingest. After the first chewing incident, he audiologist put them on a tether which clipped to the back of her shirt. It worked great for the taking them out and playing with and then dropping type of losses down into recliner, on floor, etc. But even on tether, by the last 3 months of life and advanced dementia, she still took it out of her ear, looked at it and quickly popped it in her mouth. They even made the hearing aids a bright red color and clearer to signal not a food. So, I guess it depends where your mom is in her dementia. Mom needed her hearing aids to listen and enjoy programs and music. But by the end of her life, someone was always with her 1:1. I can't tell you how many times I went thru the garbage can with gloves on looking for missing hearing aids before we got them tethered. And as far as seniors with dementia popping them in their mouths--, it isn't way common. Her audiologist, of many years and in a very large practice, had only heard of them getting destroyed with seniors chewing them. She had never had a patient do it-- no less twice. Each person different. I only share it to let you discern where your mom is in the dementia path and see if could be a potential danger with ingestion. Most likely gone out in garbage or lost in furniture etc,, however. Bless u as u care for your mom.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Wow, what an experience. That’s a good point, to know what part dementia plays. For her, memory loss seems to play the most significant part (she tucks them away somewhere, much like she has done with things her whole life), but there are apparently many on here who are dealing with different factors.
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I had the audiologist send mom's in-ear hearing aids back to the manufacturer. They implanted a nylon cord loop on the device, attached to a nylon line (like fishing line) with an alligator clip on the end. They have stayed on much better. We had a couple of times when they were missing, but the size of the whole thing made them much easier to find.

The staff has learned to lock them up at night at the nurse's station (along with their narcotics supplies). Yes, sometimes they forget to put them in, but it's much better than losing them. When I've caught her without them, I email the lead nurse asking her to remind the staff that "this lady needs to hear to communicate with you." It's a gentle reminder that this is a person who can still be part of the world but needs your help. The staff is your care partner, so enlist their cooperation and let them know you appreciate it.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thanks!
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I got sick of searching for hearing aids, and my mom was totally unbothered that she’d spent $6k on 2 sets... i read in another thread about a hearing assistance device on Amazon (looks like a hearing aid) for $39.99...so i bought it, and tested it myself. Worked perfectly and she could also hear. Please try this, it will reduce stress a little bit. Mom still lost or “disappeared” this one, but I at least have a solution. I get so dam tired raising my voice or having to shout for her to hear... it’s very frustrating. Good luck!
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NYCmama Feb 2021
would love to know the brand name
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One option is a Pocket Talker. It is a small device worn on a lanyard with headphone that you can change. Harder to lose and work great. I use them for clients at my work and for my Mom when she was having issues with her ears being blocked. Much cheaper and harder to lose.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thank you!
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Oh my! I empathize with you SO much! When Mom was in Independent Living, after Dad died, she kept losing things. Among the were hearing aids. After the third set (she lost, then found them in a pair of socks, then lost them again), we were able to use an old set of my husband's with very little cost. She is in Assisted Living now and the staff are supposed to take the hearing aids from her every evening and return them to her each morning. I talked to her this weekend and she didn't know where the hearing aids were. Housekeeping checks her trash when they empty it. Mom gets very hostile when nurses have to look for them, but the nurses insist that they are just helping her look for them and try not to sound punitive. I'm not sure what we'll do if she's lost another pair. She really doesn't have the money for replacements. And what's the point anyway? So frustrating! You are not alone!
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thanks. I hope you are getting some ideas on this forum. No solution is perfect, of course. Maybe something like the Pocket Talker?
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I had the same problem with a friend for whom I was POA and caring for - in this case her false teeth which she needed. I replaced ONE set and then it happened again. I told her in no uncertain terms - no more, no matter what. I don't care why they are lost, they cannot just be replaced over and over again. These people make their beds so they must lie in them - their problem. DO NOT BE A FOOL AND KEEP REPLACING THEM. They will continue to lose them and you will continue to lose money. Don't do it.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Are you serious??!!! God forbid that you are responsible for anyone with memory loss or any other sort of cognitive deterioration!!!
If we go with the “these people make their beds so they must lie in them” sort of reasoning, the world of the becomes a very, very unkind place.
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Just a short term fix I've used with patients and when my Dad was hospitalized and left his hearing aids home. Buy a cheap, DISPOSABLE stethoscope to keep in the room, labeled with mom's name. I googled and there are some for $3.20-4.75.
As with my patients, my Dad was stunned at how well he could hear. Family and friends and staff put the ear pieces in and hold the end of the stethoscope and speak into that end. If medical personnel can hear heart beats and faint lung sounds, speaking voices are easy to hear.

Magic!
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Interesting idea - might suggest this to staff to try.
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I'm not in / haven't been in this situation myself (yet, lol) but my mom has hearing aids and she's starting to show some signs of memory loss (we're investigating still on potential causes).

I'm curious to know from those of you that have been / are in the situation with your loved one repeatedly taking them out, why do they do that specifically? Is it related to them "feeling it" and it's weird / uncomfortable, so they take it out, or it's loose and falls out and they don't know to put it back, or is there a reason at all?

Apologies in advance, I don't know much about Alzheimer's / dementia yet, still learning!
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disgustedtoo Feb 2021
Could be any number of reasons. My mother was initially just forgetting to put it in, then when you find it and give it to her, it becomes a focus of sorts, at least for her. Before it just was, for a long long time. Then it becomes a thing, possibly forgotten what it is, why it's there. One time when I asked her if she had her hearing aid in, she said she didn't wear one. Again, in her case, she was living life about 40+ years ago, so that may have been prior to getting hearing aids. Once I'd locate it and bring it to her, she would remember it and ask where I found it and put it in!

Think of how kids maybe have to wear a patch, glasses, bandage, etc, and they fiddle with it, take it off, play with it, whatever. Sort of the same kind of thing. A few times they gave mom a lanyard with a button, to call for assistance. She had no clue what it was really and when she would notice it, she'd lift it up, turn it around, inspect it and then push the button, having no clue what she was doing!

I think for her it was kind of the same - once attention was brought to it, she'd focus on it, take it out, then out of habit, wrap it in tissue or a napkin - most likely how they lost a brand new one, only a few months old. She only wore one, so the second one was taken away every time she took it out. Then it becomes even more noticeable to her when they try to give it back! It also leads to more hearing loss, if they aren't wearing it. Vicious cycle.

Still learning - that's the name of the game unfortunately.
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Oy. Do we all have older relatives with this problem? One of my patients came in with an amplifier attached to earbuds, bluetooth capable, that he wore around his neck. It helped with the TV so it didn't need to be so loud to others, and with his cell phone. It was easy for him to hear me too. This was a few hundred dollars, instead of thousands, at Costco. There are many similar devices. The fidelity isn't comparable to real hearing aids and it can't be adjusted to her hearing loss but these are affordable to replace as needed.
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I have a suggestion but it may sound dumb. You can’t place a Bluetooth tracker on the hearing aids because they are too small. I thought that if she has a dresser or side table where she places things before bedtime (in my head she removes her diamond earings after the ball, placing them on that silver tray next to her perfume bottles). If you placed a box that was clearly labeled “hearing aids” wherever her “tray” type bedside table is. They may end up in the box. We know she wouldn’t remember that the box is for the hearing aids but if it was labeled well enough she might decide to place them there each time. If she does use the box, glue a Bluetooth tracker to it for when the box goes missing. You have probably heard of “tile” trackers but they are large and expensive. I found a pack of 5 tiny Bluetooth trackers that you can affix to all sorts of things that get lost. I think I payed $25 for all 5! I thought they would be junky chinese throw aways buy they work really well. They are called “Trackr” and there is a free app. This probly wont help but we gotta throw the whole pot of speghetti against the wall sometimes. Maybe something will stick. Im off to go invent hearing aids with a tracking device built in.
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Portier Feb 2021
***Update***
ok so of course hearing aid trackers that I was inventing is already a thing! Checkout f6s.com and davidsonhearingaids.com. Aside from bluetooth there are tons of other tracking technologies.
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Imho, invest in a hearing aide tracker. May I say that many hearing aide wearers either fail to wear their hearing aide(s), keep them in a drawer and other things. Many patients do NOT treat their hearing aide like the valuable device that it is. It is likened to a prosthetic limb. For the patient's family and friends, it is HIGHLY annoying when the person does not wear the aide because the person does not hear well - or at ALL, responds incorrectly, e.g. "Ma'am, what entree would you like to order?" The person responds "I did not say that I was older." You get the picture! More annoying for the family and friends. Prayers sent.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Annoyance is not something that ought to be part of the process of working with people who cannot hear and are forgetful.
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Even if you found a way to add a cord, and keep them around her neck, it will be taken off for shower time. Everything gets stolen in a NH.
Everything my dad had was stolen. Right down to his clothing, socks, magazines, anything in his drawers, pictures of him/family. Never got them back.
I think that is a loosing battle. The staff will put them in a drawer, and a resident will walk off with them.
Best way is to keep them and put them in when you visit and then take them out. Good luck.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
I am sorry the “everything gets stolen in a NH” is part of your experience. We are fortunate to be able to trust the staff in this place; not that it couldn’t happen, but I don’t believe that’s the problem at all.
Getting them out only when we visit is not acceptable if there are any other choices. Hearing sounds in the environment, staff coming in and out of her room, brief chats, are all critical to her well being.
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Do they still make old school ear trumpets? She'd have a tough time losing one of them.
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A product called super ear is a very effective amplifier used in nursing homes and hospitals instead of expensive hearing aids which tend to get lost . Super Ear is $50 and can be bought online.It really works very well.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Thanks. I’ll check it out.
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Is someone stealing the hearing aids? I know of two situations where items were stolen (not hearing aids) reported by two different families in nice facilities. You might look at the link below.

https://theconsumervoice.org/uploads/files/long-term-care-recipient/THEFT-AND-LOSS-FACT-SHEET.pdf
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Chris52 Feb 2021
I truly don’t believe this is the case here.
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Get an over the head (like headphones) Amplifier. Had to do that with my SO, and he ended up turning them into TV headphones and won't wear for hearing. I think some, esp. with dementia just get used to not hearing. I've given up on the crazy little expensive worthless hearing aids with their tiny little never last must change once a week batteries.
They will let you know what they need. In my case, much better off not hearing than dealing with hearing aids.
And keep in mind, Nursing Homes don't care.
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Chris52 Feb 2021
Sounds like you have had a bad experience with nursing homes. I have worked in several and know that this can happen. I do not believe that this is the case in my mom’s and I have seen more evidence than ever of this during the pandemic.
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