\n Read the full report:\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Wright told The Herald: \u201cA\u00a0medical professional confirmed that Dawson had very bad glue ear and that we should get a referral for audiology to discuss grommet surgery.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI informed her that we had been trying and had been told it was a two-year wait to which she seemed shocked. She said Dawson could not wait that long.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Grommet surgery involves draining fluid from the patient\u2019s ear in order to relieve hearing loss.\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Wright said that following another hospital visit, the family were again told that it would be up to a two-year wait for Dawson to receive surgery. They were also advised that their only option to speed up the process was to pay for the surgery privately.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n This could cost the family between \u00a33,000 and \u00a36,000 which Ms Wright told The Herald they cannot afford.\n<\/p>\n
\n Now Ms Wright says Dawson and the family have been left behind to deal with his condition. They were advised to purchase a device which drains fluid from the ear called an \u2018Otovent\u2019, although Ms Wright says this only provides moderate relief.\n<\/p>\n
\n She told The Herald that her son\u2019s level of hearing now regularly fluctuates and the onset of an illness such as a cold, flu, or hay fever is enough for it to significantly deteriorate.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cAnd because he’s got used to it and he’s got ADHD, I think he’s masking quite well,\u201d Ms Wright said.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI think since he has tried to adjust to it, he wouldn’t be able to identify what a reduction in hearing actually is because this has really been going on since he was born.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Wright said that living with his condition without treatment has been \u201chugely difficult\u201d for Dawson, affecting his attainment at school and personal relationships, often leading to him feeling excluded.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cI mean, my son is your typical, I guess, what you would expect of a wee boy with ADHD. Not a bad bone in his body, but constantly getting it wrong and not understanding when to stop.\u00a0\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cA big part of that is because he isn’t taking information via all of his senses in a consistent and similar way to his peers, and that’s hugely affected by his hearing.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cAnd when his hearing is really bad, his personality completely changes and he can become disruptive in class because he feels disengaged.\u201d\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms Wright said her son has been left behind at school (Image: Melanie Wright)Ms Wright also says Dawson\u2019s performance in school assessments are being affected.\n<\/p>\n
\n \u201cHe just wasn’t achieving and then at one point he changed and he really worried me because this wee outgoing boy could see the world getting further and further away from him,\u201d she added.\n<\/p>\n
\n The lack of NHS support has also put strain on Ms Wright\u2019s entire family. She said that Dawson\u2019s hearing means he is unable to engage with conversations in the family home.\n<\/p>\n