2ĭisabling hearing loss affects around 360 million people around the world, and it is estimated that approximately one-third of people aged over 65 years have hearing loss. In the youth population, the unemployment rate is currently at 50 per cent. A high percentage of the population is not employed (27.3 per cent in 2016). Poverty rates were estimated at 15.9 per cent for 2016. South Africa's economy is considered by the World Bank to be a dual economy, with one of the highest inequality rates in the world. This article explores aural rehabilitation in resource-constrained settings, with South Africa presented as an example the findings could be applied to similar settings elsewhere. In order to customise rehabilitation, it is important to consider aspects that Schow Reference Schow 1 describes as: (1) ‘CORE’ – communication status, overall participation variables, related personal factors and environmental factors and (2) ‘CARE’ – counselling and psychosocial aspects, audibility and impairment management, remediate communication activity, and environmental co-ordination and participation improvement. Aural rehab can reduce one’s perception of hearing difficulties, improve one’s perception of quality of life, help one to become a more effective user of hearing technology and communication strategies, and improve one’s personal adjustment to living with hearing loss.Aural rehabilitation is crucial to optimise the quality of life in a person with hearing loss. practices have been shown to be significant. and, steps that include working with a professional, such as face-to-face coaching with an auditory training specialist (which can be a teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing or a speech/language pathologist).steps involving the use of internet resources, such as online auditory training with programs such as “LACE” and “Angel Sound” to improve listening stamina and the ability to sustain attention in challenging listening situations.restorative steps, such as making a contract with oneself to leave a noisy party early to go home, relax, and read a book.preventative steps, such as creating a list of quiet restaurants using a mobile app (e.g.Roger Pen) to be able to hear the yoga instructor, the minister’s sermon, or members of one’s book group technological steps, such as using an assistive listening device (e.g.

Examples of steps in a hearing loss management plan might include:īehavioral steps, such as maintaining a meditation practice or participating in a weekly yoga class to support relaxation and physical well-being, or learning effective approaches to asking for modifications in the speech of the speaker.

HLAA Chapters) to build confidence, skill sets, and social support.

Those might include the use of hearing assistive technology and/or captions, communication strategies, auditory training sessions to build stamina for listening and sustained attention, relaxation techniques, and peer support groups (i.e. The person with hearing loss can begin to tackle the obstacles presented in important communication events and try out and evaluate possible solutions. Once the Needs Assessment is complete, aural rehab helps the person with hearing loss to organize and actively take charge of communication by creating a hearing loss management plan. Importantly, aural rehabilitation invites the active participation of the person with hearing loss in setting goals, identifying satisfactory outcomes and choosing solutions. These are usually the important experiences in a person’s life that present difficulties with understanding speech in the presence of noise, which challenge one’s ability to maintaining attention and focus, and/or which contribute to listening fatigue and internal stress reactions when communication breakdown occurs. Rather than relying solely on hearing aids or cochlear implants to solve hearing problems, however, the aural rehab approach uses a Needs Assessment to help the person with hearing loss pinpoint specific situations that are highly valued and at risk for being compromised by difficulties with hearing, even with excellent amplification. Such an approach to hearing health care often begins with a thorough audiologic evaluation and includes the prescription of a primary device such as a hearing aid or cochlear implant. Some hearing healthcare professionals use an aural rehabilitation model in their work with clients. Aural rehabilitation, often referred to as aural rehab or A.R., encompasses a wide set of practices aimed at optimizing a person’s ability to participate in activities that have been limited as a result of hearing loss.