Tracey-lee Cloete

Identifying a Contextually-relevant School Hearing Screening Protocol: a Collaborative Approach to Protocol Planning Tracey-lee Cloete

This research study stemmed from my experience as a community-based Audiologist in Cape Town, South Africa. During this time, I worked closely with the local school nurses and witnessed first-hand the many challenges these health workers contend with. Through my collaborative work with the school nurses I identified an urgent need for a contextually relevant hearing screening protocol to assist in improving the current state of the screening service. There is evidence in support of the conduct of routine hearing screening in our schools but limited research has been done to translate the theory into a reality. This study served to address this shortcoming using a collaborative approach in which the school nurses had a definite voice, contributing to the selection of the most appropriate hearing screening protocol for use in a school setting.