Meals on Wheels NSW recipients trial hearing tests via app

This article was originally published on Hearing Practitioner Australia.

A 12 month-trial will offer app-based hearing checks to Meals on Wheels recipients in Sydney, with potential to expand the program nationwide.

Volunteers who deliver meals will be trained to assist with and supervise a gamified hearing assessment on a tablet or smartphone for clients wearing headphones who wish to have their hearing tested.

The test takes a few minutes and will be in the form of a computer game. It is based on the successful Sound Scouts app which incorporates the science of an evidence-based hearing test into a game developed to screen mainly children for hearing problems.

Meals on Wheels recipients will have their hearing tested using an app to play an evidence-based game. Credit: Sound Scouts

Ms Carolyn Mee, Sound Scouts CEO, told Hearing Practitioner Australia (HPA) the six to eight minute game had age-appropriate variations tailored to different children’s ages.

“It has delivered more than 180,000 hearing checks across Australia and we’re very excited to be supporting this (new) project,” she said.

Professor Paul Egglestone, University of Newcastle Head of the School of Creative Industries and co-director of its research centre FASTLab, is adapting the software application into a version for adults called Sound-Bites.

Both apps provide an immediate report, including next steps if hearing loss is detected such as an audiology referral.

Trial attracts $200,000 funding

The NSW Smart Sensing Network last week announced $200,000 in seed funding for the trial which is due to start around June 2024. The not-for-profit innovation network funded by the NSW government brings together universities, industry and government to position the state as a global leader in smart sensing innovation.

Smart sensors, such as hearing aids, combine multiple elements into a single device to make the device more useful. Network grants help sensors solve real world problems.

The trial will be led by epidemiologist Professor Bamini Gopinath, Macquarie University Cochlear Chair in Hearing and Health, partnering with the University of Newcastle and industry partners Sound Scouts, Cochlear and Meals on Wheels.

NSW Smart Sensing Network MedTech theme leader Catherine Oates Smith told Hearing Practitioner Australia that Meals on Wheels NSW had 22,000 clients and 14,000 volunteers in Sydney and the trial would enable 60 volunteers to screen 600 clients.

She said it would embed hearing loss screening and education as part of routine wellbeing checks performed by volunteers. They were already trained in wellness checks and would receive additional training for hearing checks.

Tackling loneliness, depression, frailty, falls and dementia

“If successful, the plan is to apply for more funds to extend the project’s reach nationwide to rural and remote areas and then beyond,” she told HPA. “Meals on Wheels volunteers have very good, trusting relationships with their clients and they notice what’s happening, but this gives a more formal mechanism to help and find out how their hearing is.

“Hearing loss can lead to loneliness, depression, frailty, falls and increased dementia risk so any assistance volunteers can give people to reduce their chances of these outcomes is helpful.

“To partner with Meals on Wheels and help them make a difference in the community is amazing.”

Mee said Sound Scouts was developed by her team in collaboration with the National Acoustic Laboratories.

“The game-based test of hearing was an idea I had in 2010. I approached Professor Harvey Dillon, who at the time was the National Acoustic Laboratories director, and he guided the scientific development of the app,” Mee told HPA.

‘‘Professor Dillon has since left NAL but is now at Macquarie University and we continue to work together to improve access to hearing care through innovative digital solutions.

“The simple act of completing a hearing assessment encourages people to think about their hearing. Establishing a baseline that can then be used as a reference is also important. Understanding if and how your hearing changes can also encourage better management over time.”

Sound Scouts can be downloaded as an app on Apple or Android smartphones and tablets through the App Store or Google Play.

It tests speech in quiet surrounds, provides a tone test and a test of speech in noise. This checks for conductive hearing loss, sensorineural hearing loss and difficulties listening in noise, potentially caused by processing issues, attention or language issues including English as a second language.

They combine to give an overall result. A borderline result or a fail results in retesting as confirmation and if confirmed the patient is referred for further testing.