radio aids

The UK Children's Radio Aid Working Group, working with the NDCS, have produced the Quality Standards for the use of personal radio aids.  This is a resource for those who commission services for deaf children, practitioners who work with them and manufacturers.  It aims to provide realistic and attainable quality standards and describe good practice for the selection, fitting, management and evaluation of radio aid systems for CYP.

Gary Webster

Brian Copsey

James Mander

The principles of setting up bone conduction aids and BAHAs with a radio aid are exactly the same as with a hearing aid.  However, you do need to have the correct adaptor to connect it in the test box.

The NDCS booklet 'How radio aids can help - a guide for Families' has a section on connecting radio aids to bone conduction aids (page 15).

Sometimes there can be interference or a break in the transmission when using radio aids.

The NDCS explains about your rights in the UK, for getting a Radio Aid for your child.  Children in independent schools who are not supported by the LA, may have to fund it themselves.

There are some CYP who do not have a measurable hearing loss, but find listening to and processing information difficult.  Radio aids can be a useful tool for these CYP.  The research below gives examples.

This video shows how hearing aids and a radio aid helped a girl with auditory neuropathy

Bantwal, A. R. and J. W. Hall Iii (2011). "Pediatric speech perception in noise." Current Pediatric Reviews 7(3): 214-226 © 2011 Bentham Science Publishers Ltd

ALD:  ‘Assistive Listening Device’ is used to describe personal devices which help overcome hearing loss.  These can be stand alone or used in conjunction with hearing devices such as hearing aids.

Hearing aids can be connected to radio aids either through direct input leads, and connecting shoes, through connecting shoes which directly attach the receivers, via a neck loop or bluetooth streamer.

Hearing aids will either automatically connect to the radio aid, or need to be set up by an audiologist.  There may be a specific programme which is used for the radio aid.  To connect via a loop, the hearing aid needs to have a T or induction loop enabled.

The manuals that come with the systems explain how to use them.

Hearing devices can be connected to a variety of other technology to give the hearing aid wearer direct access to eg Phones, TV, iPad or tablet, mobile phones, smart board.

Some radio aids can be used to do this, either by bluetooth or using direct input leads

The Connevans website allows you to see the technology that is compatible with your hearing aids

Radio aids can be very useful in everyday life.  Deaf CYP often find themselves in difficult listening environments eg horse riding, bike riding, the car, supermarket, music and drama rehearsals, listening to music, phone, TV, restaurant, cafe, the park.

This poster gives some examples of parents using radio aids with their children in everyday life and includes some of their comments.

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