The Audiology team at the Seashell Trust —a national charity which supports children and young adults with learning difficulties, disabilities, complex health needs, and autism – recently participated in a hearing checks pilot, in collaboration with NHS (National Health Service) England and TympaHealth. As part of the pilot, the Tympa System was used to help assess children’s hearing health, (such as persistent wax build up, frequent infections etc).
Seashell employed a Therapy Assistant to support the audiology caseload within the organisation, she expanded her clinical role to perform otoscopy with the Tympa System, identifying a healthy ear drum, and using the ‘Remote Review’ feature to ask an ENT Surgeon or Audiologist for their expert opinion should there be concerns regarding infections or other ear health conditions.
Principal Audiologist Verity Langlands at the Seashell Trust stated that “The Remote Review technology enabled the Therapy Assistant to become competent quickly and enabled me to supervise remotely which saved both time and costs. Clinical decisions could be made quickly and collaboratively with the on-site nursing team and external GP referral for the best treatment.”
By using the Tympa System within the audiology team at Seashell, the team can ensure students, many of whom already have significant communication difficulties, are able to access audiology services in a timely manner, in environments which feel safe and familiar, without needing to be supported away from their education to external clinical settings.
“The device is easily portable which makes it the perfect device to have onsite at a school as otoscopy can be performed anywhere and supports the detection of potential ear/hearing problems at the early stage. This has been an incredibly valuable feature for us at Seashell as the students we support have learning difficulties and complex needs, and therefore transitions to a GP surgery or hospital/clinic setting can be challenging for the students.
Not only that, but the Remote Review feature also enables support staff to be trained to use the device which means that the students can be supported by familiar staff making the process easier and quicker. On one occasion, an unsettled student was holding their ear in pain and there was no audiologist on site to attend to them. I was able to go to the classroom with the Tympa System, perform otoscopy, and upload a video to be remotely reviewed. Within minutes our Audiologist could access the system offsite, she was able to confirm the ear infection and we were able to provide the correct support to the student quickly.” – Alivia Thomas, Therapy Assistant at Seashell Trust
