Cochlear Implant Program (CIP)

Program Overview
Effective July 2001, in agreement with the Department of Otolaryngology, at the QE II Health Sciences Centre, 20 surgeries are now possible in Halifax (14 for Nova Scotians, 6 out of province). As well, additional rehabilitation services, including Auditory Verbal Therapy, will be provided by Nova Scotia Hearing and Speech Centres.

The Cochlear Implant Program will have an enormous impact on the hearing health care of the severely hearing impaired population of Nova Scotia. These implanted patients will now have access to sound that was not available by ordinary hearing aids and thus will improve their quality of life.

It is expected that providing this service will reduce the emotional and financial stress experienced by families who had previously been required to travel outside the province for this procedure. And, over time, the program will grow to serve as a center of excellence in cochlear implant technology.

The implant program, housed at the Halifax Community Clinic at Park Lane, will have 1.5 Audiologists and 1 Speech Language Pathologist. In conjunction with the Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) Doctors at the QEII, a family centered team approach will be maintained. Program evaluation will consist of the following:
• percentage of successful implants
• improvement on various speech tests
• how often the implant is used by the individual

Since receiving funding in November 1998, the Nova Scotia Hearing and Speech Centres (NSHSC) offers pre-implant assessments to determine candidacy, post-operative activation of the cochlear implant, and post-implant follow-up.