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10/09/2015  |   8:30 AM - 9:45 AM   |  Technology   |  Andrew Foster Auditorium

SMARTPHONE HEARING SCREENING IN mHEALTH ASSISTED COMMUNITY-BASED PRIMARY CARE

Introduction: Access to ear and hearing health is a challenge in developing countries where the burden of disabling hearing loss is greatest. This study investigated community-based identification of hearing loss using smartphone hearing screening (hearScreenTM) operated by community health care workers (CHWs) in terms of clinical utility and reported experiences of CHWs. Method: The study comprised two phases. During phase one 24 CHWs did community-based hearing screening as part of their regular home visits over 12 weeks in an underserved community using automated test protocols employed by the hearScreenTM smartphone application operating on low cost smartphones with calibrated headphones. During phase two CHWs completed a questionnaire regarding their perceptions and experiences of the community-based screening program. Results: Data analysis was conducted on the results of 108 children (2-15 years) and 598 adults (16-85 years). Referral rates for children and adults were 12% and 6.5% respectively. Noise exceeding permissible levels had a significant effect on screen results at 25dB HL at 1kHz (p<.01). Age significantly affected adult referral rates (p<.01) demonstrating a lower rate (4.3%) in younger as opposed to older adults (13.2%). CHWs were positive regarding the hearScreenTM solution in terms of usability, need for services, value to community members and time efficiency. Conclusion: hearScreenTM smartphone-based hearing screening allows CHWs to bring hearing health care to underserved communities at a primary care level. Active noise monitoring and data management features allow for quality control and remote monitoring for surveillance and follow-up.

  • To determine if a hearing screening program using a mHealth solution can be integrated with community-based primary care provided by community health care workers to provide access to underserved populations.
  • To describe perceptions and experiences of community health workers conducting hearing screening as part of community-based primary care.

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Shouneez Yousuf Hussein (POC,Primary Presenter,Author), Department of Speech Language Pathology and Audiology, University of Pretoria, South Africa, shouneezyousuf@gmail.com;
Shouneez Yousuf Hussein is a student from the Central Islamic School in Pretoria, South Africa. She received her degree in B. Communication Pathology: Audiology with cum laude in 2012 from the University of Pretoria, South Africa, after which she completed her community service at Tshwane District Hospital. She had thereafter completed her Masters Degree with cum laude at the University of Pretoria in 2015. She is currently completing her PhD in Audiology under the supervision of Prof. De Wet Swanepoel. Her current research focuses on utilizing innovative technologies to integrate ear and hearing health care service delivery within early childhood development programs in order to reach underserved populations.

      ASHA DISCLOSURE:

Financial - No relevant financial relationship exist.

Nonfinancial - No relevant nonfinancial relationship exist.


      AAA DISCLOSURE:

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De Wet Swanepoel (Author,Co-Author), University of Pretoria, Pretoria , South Africa; Ear Sciences Centre, School of Surgery , The University of Western Australia, Nedlands , Australia; Ear Science Institute Australia , Subiaco , Australia; Callier Center for Communication Disorders , University of Texas at Dallas , USA, dewet.swanepoel@up.ac.za;
De Wet Swanepoel is professor in audiology at the University of Pretoria, South Africa and a senior research fellow at the Ear Science Institute Australia with adjunct positions at the University of Texas at Dallas and the University of Western Australia. He has published more than 100 peer-reviewed articles, books and book chapters and has received numerous awards in recognition of his work. His research capitalises on the growth in information and communication technologies to explore, develop and evaluate innovative solutions to improve access to ear and hearing health care. He is lead inventor of the award winning and patented hearScreenTM smartphone hearing test. Prof Swanepoel also serves as associate editor for the International Journal of Audiology, as president-elect for the International Society of Audiology and as co-chair for the telehealth task force of the American Academy of Audiology.
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Herman Myburgh (Author,Co-Author), University of Pretoria, herman.myburgh@up.ac.za;
Hermanus C. Myburgh, PhD, is a senior lecturer and Computer Engineer in the Department of Electrical, Electronic & Computer Engineering, University of Pretoria, South Africa. His research interests are in the fields of digital signal processing, machine learning and sensor fusion, detection and estimation, error-correction coding and channel equalisation in wireless communication systems. He has published numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, and has presented his work at various international conferences. He is also a co-inventor of the hearScreen smartphone-based hearing screening device.
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Robert Eikelboom (Co-Author), University of Pretoria, Pretoria , South Africa; Ear Sciences Centre, School of Surgery , The University of Western Australia, Nedlands , Australia; Ear Science Institute Australia , Subiaco , Australia., rob.eikelboom@uwa.edu;
Adj Prof Rob Eikelboom is a bio-engineer who has been involved in medical research for 20 years. His primary interests is in telehealth as a tool to improve the access of people in rural and remote areas to medical specialists. He has led the development of AurisView, telehealth software that collates, stores and manages telehealth data. It is currently in use in a number of centres in Australia. He was recently awarded a $515,000 grant to develop a hearing loss prevention programme for users of personal music players, such as iPods. His research and clinical interests are telehealth and telemedicine, computer aided diagnosis, remote area primary health, hearing loss prevention.
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Jannie Hugo (Co-Author), Department of Family Medicine, University of Pretoria, South Africa , Jannie.Hugo@up.ac.za;
Jannie Hugo is a family physician and associate professor in the Department of Family Medicine at the University of Pretoria, South Africa responsible for Community Engagement for the Faculty of Health Sciences. Before that he worked for 17 years at Medunsa, South Africa. He is the on the executive and several committees of the Medical and Dental Professions Board of South Africa, Director of the Rural Health Initiative (RHI) where he initiated a rural recruitment programme that developed into the establishment of African Health Placements (AHP), an NGO recruiting health professionals for rural and underserved areas in Southern Africa. He is also a founder-researcher of the Madibeng Centre for Research (MCR) in Brits and a Director of Enablemed, a managed health care organisation. His interest is education in primary care, the consultation, the management of primary care services, district and rural health and the development of district campuses in urban and rural areas. He has published work on consultation, district clinic health services, the management of district hospitals and training in primary care. For three years (2003 -2006) he was the facilitator of a project in the development of family medicine training in SA and initiated the development of a mid-level medical worker programme for the country
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Leigh Biagio de Jager (Co-Author), Department of Speech Language Pathology and Audiology, University of Pretoria, South Africa, leigh.biagio@up.ac.za;
Leigh Biagio de Jager obtained her B.Communication Pathology in 1997, M.Communication Pathology degree Cum Laude in 2009 and D.Phil Communication Pathology in 2015. Apart from three years spent as a paediatric audiological scientist in United Kingdom, Leigh has been in private audiological practice in South Africa for 17 years. Leigh is currently employed at the Department of Speech-Language Therapy and Audiology at the University of Pretoria for the past 2 years. Her research area is auditory electrophysiology, intraoperative monitoring of CN VIII and hearing telehealth.
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