With Apple’s planned release later this year, you’ll be able to create a Memoji that wears a cochlear implant for you to share in digital messages and FaceTime on your Apple device.
Memojis are Apple’s version of emoji characters that help you visually describe your personality and key physical features that are special or defining to you. In your messages, they are also a way of visually describing the way you are feeling or your mood.
Cochlear sees this as an important step to help build awareness and normalise the role cochlear implants play in treating severe to profound hearing loss.
“The Apple Memoji is an important stepping-stone in raising recognition and awareness of cochlear implants around the world,” says Julie Ligeti, Director of Global Public Advocacy for Cochlear.
“Everyone with an Apple iPhone will have the Memoji, and the scale of Apple’s reach is massive,” she says.
“However, the next and bigger challenge is to make sure that communities not only recognise that the Memoji has a cochlear implant, but theyalso understand what cochlear implants can do to transform the lives of people with severe to profound hearing loss.
“Whilst we are on the right pathway … we will only achieve ‘normal’ when cochlear implants are both recognised and understood.”
Julie adds that raising awareness of cochlear implants in our communities is also crucial because a lack of awareness means people who could benefit from appropriate treatment for their hearing loss may miss out.
Cochlear is working with partners around the world to address under-recognition of the effectiveness of hearing implants and on improving access for those who could benefit.
“Public advocacy, the consumer voice and voices of families and loved ones can make a huge and positive difference. The proposal for the Memoji has the support of many consumer advocacy organisations and has been especially championed by Euro-CIU for some years,” says Julie.
Euro-CIU is a European region Cochlear Implant User and user-family advocacy organisation with member advocacy organisations across Europe.
“Advocacy can help individuals gain better access to care and support and it can help wider society to learn and understand the needs of people with hearing loss. The views of communities can help to persuade policy makers to make better policies.”
Stay tuned for an update from Apple later in the year about the release of their cochlear implant Memoji and spread the word! (or maybe by the time you read this article, it is already available).
What can you do?
If you use Apple products and have a cochlear implant, create your own Memoji when it becomes available and share it through your messaging channels.
References
iPhone, iPad and iPod touch are trademarks of Apple Inc., registered in the U.S. and other countries.
