Laura was looking for work and she has hearing loss. Her WorkBC Employment Centre referred her to WorkBC Assistive Technology Service to help her get the technology she needs to work.

“The Assistive Technology Services program assisted me by providing a hearing aid that is compatible with my upgraded CI sound processor and the Roger On device, which I use daily,” she shares.

Recently, Laura’s perseverance paid off and she found employment — the new hearing aid has been invaluable in her new workplace.

“The Assistive Technology Services program has positively impacted my life,” she says. “These accommodations have significantly improved my ability to work collaboratively with my team and attend regular meetings. Without them, I would face communication barriers that could hinder my work.

“I wholeheartedly recommend the Assistive Technology Services program to others. After a six-month period of unemployment and relocation expenses, the financial assistance provided for the hearing aid alleviated some of my financial burdens.”

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WorkBC Assistive Technology Services is operated by Neil Squire. Assistive Technology Services are available to individuals who have a work-related barrier due to a disability or a functional limitation. This may include barriers related to traveling to and from the workplace.

Questions about WorkBC Assistive Technology Services? Need help applying? Contact us: 1-844-453-5506 or info-ats@workbc.ca

Please visit www.workbc-ats.ca for more information about WorkBC Assistive Technology Services.

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Thanks to vehicle modifications he received through WorkBC Assistive Technology Services, Ahmed has been able to work as a rideshare driver for the last four months.

Ahmed has a spinal cord injury and uses a wheelchair. His local WorkBC Centre referred him to Assistive Technology Services to support his self-employment goals.

“They changed my life. I couldn’t use my car easily. They gave me a transfer seat and lift for my wheelchair,” he shares. “I don’t need anyone to help with my wheelchair anymore. I can use my car alone.”

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Tiffany works as an executive for a non-profit. She has moderate to severe hearing loss.

“If I don’t have hearing aids, I cannot work,” she shares.

When her old hearing aids started to fail, her audiologist referred her to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services for funding for a new set of hearing aids.

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Madeleine works as a coach and personal trainer in Southeastern British Columbia.

“I love my job,” she says. “I get to interact with people of all ages, and help them feel fit and strong and capable of whatever goals they have.

“I am deaf in my right ear. I’ve been this way for as long as I can remember. As I grew older and more mature, [I realized] that I was missing out on a lot of conversations,” she shares. “It started to negatively impact my job situation when I realized I couldn’t hear clients if they needed help, if they were asking a question, if they wanted to point something out. I was missing that whole part of my job.”

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Rachel works as a child caregiver, taking care of a toddler, as well as doing light housekeeping and meal preparation. She has hearing loss.

“I have difficulty in hearing and understanding during conversation, as well, I can’t fully hear what the toddler says — I’m struggling to hear the toddler crying from his room from nap. Also I am unable to understand what my employers are trying to ask me when they give instructions,” she shares.

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Karen works in the finance department of an organization, responsible for variance reporting, budget analysis, and reconciliation. She oversees two bookkeepers, and also answers the inquiries of managers, donors, and stakeholders. Recently, she has noticed a decline in her hearing, particularly affecting her ability to hear speech.

“Accuracy is vital for my work,” she says. “This is significantly impacting my ability to perform my duties as an accounting assistant and is also affecting my relationships with colleagues and vendors.”

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Carol works as a receptionist and does office administration work for a construction company. She has hearing loss.

“[WorkBC Assistive Technology Services helped me] by paying a large portion of the cost of two hearing aids. Financially, I was not able to purchase them on my own,” she shares.

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Kerstin is self-employed, working as an accountant. Her job involves talking with staff and customers, both in-person and over the phone. She has hearing loss.

Her audiologist referred her to WorkBC Assistive Technology Services, and with funding through the program, Kerstin was able to purchase a new set of hearing aids.

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Suzy is a visual artist based in Vancouver. She has also been teaching art for over 30 years.

She began noticing hearing loss nearly 15 years ago, and had previously considered getting hearing aids, but she couldn’t afford them. Suzy found it difficult to participate in events like gallery openings with her hearing loss, and as a teacher, she found she was asking students to repeat themselves multiple times.

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Kari works with a non-profit drop-in resource centre in Vernon that helps people find and understand health services and supports. She runs a monthly chronic pain group for the non-profit, and she also manages their social media and website.

“I do quite a bit of work on the computer, and this has brought great pain to my neck and shoulder area as I have degenerative disc disorder, osteoarthritis, and psoriatic arthritis, along with fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue, and chronic migraines. This makes it very difficult to work for any length of time as I am in so much pain,” she shares.

“I also carry supplies needed for my monthly chronic pain groups and have had to find ways to carry these in an easier filing system with wheels as I just don’t have the strength to carry it from the street into the venue.”

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