Do you see deaf people as handicapped people who need audiometric intervention, or as proud members of a linguistic minority? Are the two philosophies irreconcilable?
This thread is for parents to discuss pediatric implants—whether they’ve chosen implants for their deaf children, oppose implanting their children, are contemplating doing it, or are undecided about it.
More parents are opting to give their children implants while enrolling them in signing programs. If you’re a parent of a signing deaf child with an implant, or are a signer with an implant, share your views here.
They’re expensive and heavily promoted, and more and more deaf babies, children, and adults are getting them. But just how well do cochlear implants work? Discuss the pros and cons.
Hearing aids have long been an accepted part of Deaf culture, while cochlear implants aren’t. The main difference is that aids are removable; implants are permanent.
Most Deaf people object to paying for another person’s cochlear implant, especially if the implantee is a child. Discuss your views on the economic aspects of the implant boom.
The boom in pediatric implants has had considerable impact on schools for the deaf. Even sign-language-affirmative schools have set up oral/auditory preschool programs where no signing is used. The number of oral/auditory day schools has increased. More deaf children with implants are being mainstreamed. What are the long-range implications for the children—and our community?
The cochlear-implant industry is fantastically wealthy and influential. Pro-implant propaganda is found in all forms of the mass media, thinly disguised, or undisguised, in newspaper, magazine, and TV reportage. Some parents of implanted children have used their children to lobby for Congressional support—while ASL-using children are relatively “invisible.”
Recent cases of kickbacks (unethical collusion between doctors and implant manufacturers) have been publicized. Devices manufactured by the major implant corporations have been recalled. What are the ethical implications of hearing-owned, hearing-run companies profiting from the implanting of deaf children? Share your views.
