By Dan Bross & Tim Bodony
Fairbanks, AK – For years cochlear implants have brought some level of hearing to the deaf. More than just a hearing aid, the implants directly stimulate the auditory nerve, which in turn sends a signal to the brain - just like a functioning ear. While some consider the technology, an attack on deaf culture, about twenty-three thousand people nationwide have had cochlear implants. Ten thousand of those are children. Three patients from the Bering Straits region have regained their hearing, in a program led by audiologist Phil Hofstetter. Hofstetter splits his time between Norton Sound Health Corporation facilities in Nome and Unalakleet.