Denise McClung – S.I.S.G. – 6 February 2018

As we get older we are all threatened with the possibility of impaired hearing or vision. Denise McClung, project manager with the Sensory Impaired Support Group (SISG) came along to talk to us about this worthwhile Ayrshire charity.

SISG was established in 1998 and now has 46 volunteers to assist 4 staff in delivering a range of support services to affected individuals across Ayrshire. These are provided mostly via help hubs in fifteen main towns and focus on the development of coping strategies for age-related degeneration. Practical assistance includes an introduction to adapted telephones on a try-before-you-buy basis, the servicing of hearing aids and the provision of replacement batteries. Referral routes are mostly via the NHS Audiology Departments, the three Ayrshire Councils and private care homes. Hearing aid services can be delivered at hospitals, care homes, sheltered housing or by home visits.

Denise explained that impairment was frequently accompanied by loss of confidence and loneliness which are problems across society today. SISG is encouraging older people with acquired hearing or sight loss not to be shy but to drop in to any one of their easily found Help Hubs. The charity has helped thousands of people and feedback by SISG users indicates a high degree of satisfaction with the Group which has a variety of supporters, the largest of which is the Big Lottery Fund.

Geoff Barber thanked Denise for her excellent, clearly delivered talk to an audience which included a good number with a degree of sensory impairment. He also congratulated her on the charity’s award-winning success.