THE plight of a councillor who suffered devastating hearing loss has highlighted a crisis in the provision of sophisticated aids.

Councillor Reg Ord, 70, from Dipton, near Stanley, County Durham, is struggling to understand those around him after a virus damaged his hearing.

Referred to a specialist at The James Cook University Hospital, in Middlesbrough, Coun Ord was told he needed a £33,000 cochlear implant.

The implant is an electronic device placed close to the nerve that carries sound to the brain, and can help people with profound hearing difficulties who would not be helped by conventional aids.

The Durham County Councillor was horrified when he was told that because of an increase in demand, funding for cochlear implants in the region had run out.

In a letter from his consultant, Coun Ord was told that the hospital was pushing for extra cash.

In a letter to Simon Playdell, chief executive of the South Tees Hospitals NHS Trust, Coun Ord said he felt let down by the system.

A trust spokeswoman said the regional NHS commissioning group, known as Norscore, had agreed to fund 20 cochlear implants this financial year, a rise from 17 last year.

However, a sudden rise in demand means the quota has already been exceeded.

In the first three months of the financial year, 20 patients were listed for surgery, 12 more have been assessed as being suitable for an implant and 21 patients are undergoing assessment, which could increase the number of implants this year from 20 to 53.

The issue was discussed at a meeting of representatives from North-East primary care trusts last week.

They decided they urgently needed more information about the reason for the rise in demand.

Mark Morris, of the Royal National Institute for Deaf People (RNID), said that depending on where people lived, adults might face long waits for the implants or might not be able to receive them at all.

The RNID has called on the Government to give the 7,500 UK adults who could be helped equal access to the implants.

Last year 275 adults and 414 children in England received cochlear implants.