The effectiveness of an intervention program on hearing aid maintenance for teenagers and their teachers

The impact of an intervention program on hearing aid functioning and maintenance was evaluated. The program targeted 29 teenagers who wore hearing aids, and 7 of their teachers. Using an A-B-A paradigm, the researcher monitored student and clinician reports on the hearing aids' functioning over a 12-week period that began before intervention and concluded 3 weeks after intervention ended. Pretest and posttest student and teacher questionnaires tapped these two groups' knowledge and attitudes concerning hearing aids. The 6-week intervention comprised theoretical and practical instruction in hearing aid maintenance. The number of functioning hearing aids increased significantly following intervention, and continued to increase even after intervention ended. The gap between student and clinician reports on the functional status of the hearing aids was widest in the study's first stage and narrowest--indeed, negligible--in the third. The questionnaire results indicated that both students and teachers acquired new knowledge. The study findings underscore the need for intervention programs in hearing aid maintenance and their benefits to adolescent students and their teachers.