Bringing hearing tests to our villages

Through Innovation Edge (http://innovationedge.org.za/), an organisation that invests in inventive ideas for early childhood development, we were connected with Hearscreen (http://www.hearscreen.com/). Hearscreen have developed a smartphone application that can be used in combination with a specially designed set of earphones for hearing testing. In the past, hearing tests could only be done in a testing booth at a health facility, which is always hard for remotely located communities like ours. With the Hearscreen app, we can easily screen all the children in our preschools – the early detection and remedy of problems can make a massive impact on learning and development throughout one’s life. Because Hearscreen can be used easily and cheaply on site, we can reserve our available resources to get children, with problems that need attention, to a doctor or specialist. Once we have completed the Hearscreen testing on all our children, we will use the Peekvision app, that Heascreen also provides, for eye-sight testing. We will then be able to use the Wellness Wagon to reach many more preschool and primary school children around the broader area.