On World Hearing Day 2022, Amplifon announced that it “strengthens its commitment to the treatment and prevention of hearing loss by joining the World Health Organization (WHO) ‘To Hear For Life, Listen With Care’ global campaign.”

Through this year’s campaign, WHO will focus on the importance of safe listening as a means of maintaining good hearing throughout a person’s life, emphasizing the important message that hearing care – combined with safer exposure to loud sounds – can mitigate the risk of developing hearing loss. For these reasons, WHO calls upon governments, industry partners, and civil society to raise awareness for and implement evidence-based standards that promote safe listening.

While 1.1 billion young people are currently at risk of permanent hearing loss from listening to music at loud volumes over prolonged periods of time [1], investments in hearing care are key to tackling these issues: WHO reports that, over 10 years, every $1 invested in care and prevention promises a return of nearly $16 [2]. Moreover, WHO estimates 2.5 billion people worldwide will be living with some degree of hearing loss by 2050.

To meet this looming demand, in the Americas, Amplifon is at “the forefront of training the next generation of hearing care professionals, who sit at the heart of a customer’s journey – providing vital information, tailor-made personalized solutions, and human care throughout the process.” According to the Bureau Of Labor Statistics (BLS), the demand for hearing care professionals will grow 10% in the next 10 years. Amplifon Americas currently employs nearly 2,500 hearing care professionals and provides almost 40,000 hours of training each year.

Many of those same hearing care professionals are also actively involved in the Miracle-Ear Foundation, which has “invested in communities across the country for more than 30 years, dedicating its efforts to delivering life-changing services and bringing the gift of sound to an increasing number of people in need each year.” Most recently, that support took the form of two Miracle Missions, supporting hard-hit communities in Alabama and Kentucky by providing free hearing exams and hearing aids to those in need.

“The Miracle-Ear Foundation has done amazing work broadening access and providing care to those most in need in our communities, changing more than 11,000 lives at no cost to them,” said Alessandro Bonacina, Executive Vice President of Amplifon Americas. “But we still have more to do to educate the public about the importance of protecting their hearing and treating their hearing loss with care and urgency. We need to continue to spread the message that hearing care is necessary, valuable, and effective, and the first part of that journey should start by seeing a qualified hearing care professional.”

In line with its Sustainability Plan, Amplifon aims to “continue promoting social inclusion and spreading greater awareness about hearing-loss prevention, hearing well-being, responsible listening, and the impact of noise pollution.”

[1] World Report On Hearing – WHO, March 3rd, 2021

[2] Ibid

Source: Amplifon