BUSK, The Past.

This site has evolved over the past 10 years from the original Patients Baha site, initially set up by Baha user, Paul James in the mid 1990’s.

Over that time Colin Talbot and I have worked to bring you the site in its current form. This is truly a site built “by” implanted bone conduction system users “for” users. Paul handed the site over to us full time in 2005, and has been pleased with its development.

We would like to warmly acknowledge the support of Cochlear UK (formerly Entific) the manufacturer of the Baha system, which has been forthcoming over the past years and continues to be so.

Our links with them have proved invaluable to both the development of the Baha and to the benefit of those who use the system. We also welcome links with manufacturers developing and marketing a  similar system in future.

We also have close links with Connevans, a company that manufactures and sells equipment to enhance the life of those with hearing loss. They are also the only UK outlet for Baha accessories. Again we wish to warmly acknowledge their ongoing link with us.

BUSK came about when a group of Baha users met at the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford, Kent. The ENT surgeon there, Mr. James Fairley, asked me if I would consider coordinating support for local Baha users after I was fitted with my first implant. I am not able to work as a nurse due to health issues, so had time to work on this as a volunteer.

From a monthly newsletter, Good Vibrations, which went out to local Baha users, Firmly Anchored - our magazine style newsletter - was born 6 years ago. My daughter, aged 3 at the time I began offering support, took her role as Chief Envelope packer and stamp sticker very seriously!

Firmly Anchored came about because people were passing on the newsletter to others, some a long distance from Ashford. But those people appreciated the link to support and asked to be added to our mailing list.

Having decided that whilst it offered a link, the information on it was not relative to many of the people now receiving Good Vibrations, I discussed with Entific about putting together a magazine. The name was taken from the title of an article written about the Baha & BUSK published in the 1 in 7 magazine for RNID members.

Firmly Anchored was born, thanks to Entific’s sponsorship of the first print run and for purchase of a camera.

On sending it out I asked that if people liked it and wanted to continue to receive it that they pay a fee to cover the cost of production and post. It was well received, going out as far as Hong Kong to Eddie, who continues to be a BUSK member.

Once BUSK became a charity those subscribing to Firmly Anchored became charity members.