Plea to help reunite hearing aids with their owners

The Orkney public are being asked to help reunite lost hearing aids with their owners, following a rise in the number of devices being lost during the pandemic.

According to NHS Orkney, since the start of the pandemic, there has been a large increase in the number of NHS hearing aid wearers reporting lost aids. Many people have reported that their hearing aid has been lost as they remove their COVID-19 face covering.

Christine West, head of audiology services for NHS Orkney said: “A number of patients have contacted us as they have lost their hearing aids when removing their face covering.

“This could be outside shops, when they get off the bus, outside hospitals and so on. The number of aids reported lost has increased in recent months, each with a cost attached for NHS Orkney.

“All NHS hearing aids are traceable as they have a serial number which can be tracked back to the user, so that if found they can be returned to the correct patient. I would ask any member of the public that finds a hearing aid to return it to us.

“I would also ask anyone who has unused NHS hearing aids at home to return them to us. 

“All NHS hearing aid users are advised to take particular care as they remove any face coverings to help prevent losing their hearing aid and the inconvenience this causes patients.” 

Hearing aids should be returned by Freepost, or handed in to:

Audiology Department, The Balfour, Foreland Road, Kirkwall, KW15 1NZ