Vivienne Michael (DR-UK chief executive), Calvin Black, and Rosie Cooper MP at the awards presentation event
Runner-up, 12-14 years
My first problem is when I am running about or playing football, my cochlear implant (C.I.) keeps falling off and I get quite annoyed. Also when I am in the swimming pool, I have to take it off which means I can't hear any of my mates talking to me and that makes me feel left out and I don’t enjoy swimming without it.
My last difficulty is when it’s raining the C.I. breaks because of the water which means my mum or dad has to take me to Crosshouse Hospital which is in Kilmarnock and I live in Abronhill, and also using my mum and dad’s diesel and it’s causing a lot of pollution. To drive down there it takes me a minimum of two hours just to get there and I am fed up in the car doing nothing and hearing nothing. I also get angry because I need to leave my friends and when I get back it‘s to dark to go back out.
When I heard about this competition, it really got me thinking what I could do to solve my problems so I thought up this idea of making the C.I into a small, flat square the same colour as your flesh, right behind your ear so no one can see it. For swimming you could cover it with a skin graft so the water can‘t get in and it can’t float away. To turn on and off, you click your fingers once for on and twice for off and then to power it, scientists could make a C.I charging base with Bluetooth and when the new C.I is running out of charge, the Bluetooth in the C.I charging base would find your C.I and charge it automatically.
Winning entries
12-14 years |
15-18 years |
First Prize |
First Prize |
Runners-up |
Runner-up |
