Hard of hearing clients get help talking with lawyers

Some Island lawyers now have a tool to help them better communicate with people who have hearing loss.

As part of a pilot project, the P.E.I. Chapter of the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association has distributed 10 assistive listening devices to interested lawyers.

This is a very importanttimein a person's life.- Annie Lee MacDonald

The Pocketalkers allow a person to wear a headset, and amplify a person's voice.

"If you're hard of hearing, which I am, you have to depend on assistive devices to ensure that you have the best communication possible when you are chatting with different people," said P.E.I. Chapter president Annie Lee MacDonald.

"We saw a need there, because this is a very important time in a person's life, when they're making some personal decisions regarding the future of their estates, or future of their lives."

The lawyers will get to use the devices for about three months, and then decide if they would like to buy one.

MacDonald said she has received a lot of positive feedback, and several lawyers have already decided to buy a device. She hopes eventually all Island lawyers will have a Pocketalker.

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