Terry Black with American City Business Journals reported that Paula Rosenthal, who is hearing-impaired, decided to set up a Web site, HearingExchange.com in St. Louis, MO after her experience when her daughter was diagnosed of hearing loss. Rosenthal, a lawyer by training, had relocated from New York so that her child could attend classes at the Moog Center for Deaf Education that teaches hearing impaired children to speak.  School founder Jean Moog said about 75 percent of the children at the center moved to St. Louis for the purpose of at tending the school. Rosenthal was angry that her child had lost valuable learning time due to the delayed diagnosis. Her daughter might already be developmentally behind schedule: Children who do not begin to speak within their first couple years have considerable difficulty learning later on. “Our doctors did not tell us about new born hearing tests, such as the ABR or the OAE tests that were available. It wasn’t until (our daughter) started to talk that I suspected she had a problem, because she could say 10 to 15 words, but others were not forthcoming.”  She hopes that the website will “…provide a community where people with hearing loss,

parents of deaf and hard-of-hearing children and professionals can learn, network and find the information they need.”  Hearing Exchange.com debuted in September, 2000 and offers news, articles, forums and opportunities to solicit advice from experts. There also is a network of links to other Web sites related to hearing loss. Rosenthal writes a bi-monthly “e-zine” that keeps those on the mailing list apprised of the latest news and articles related to the subject. The site is privately owned and funded by Rosenthal, who said she spends at least 30 to 40 hours a week working on it.