Assessing the benefits of the assistive listening devices

The purpose of an assistive listening device is to make speech/sound accessible in difficult listening environments for hearing aids and CIs, by reducing the effect of distance and background noise.  The assistive listening is set up and balanced before being subjectively assessed by the wearer.  Objective evaluation using speech discrimination tests assesses the benefit the wearer gains as well as their functional use of their listening package.

Is it worth it? Measuring benefit in noise by Joyce Sewell Rutter and Richard Vaughan is an outline of measuring the benefit of using radio aids in noise.

The Quality Standards for the use of personal radio aids recommends in QS4 that  the child’s listening response must be checked with the complete system in place.

These evaluations are usually done in ideal listening conditions with the typical mainstream classroom noise introduced, enabling the signal and noise to be measured.

Section 4 of the Quality Standards Good Practice Guide 2008 details the way the information that can be used, available tests and methods of administering the tests.

Soundbyte Solutions produced a SIN test kit called the Parrot Plus.

Speech In Noise testing is currently being reviewed by ALTWG to produce more up to date testing procedures that work with current hearing technology.