Paediatric Audiology (Hounslow and Richmond)

The trust's Audiology team is led and managed by the head of service. The team is made up of 2 team leaders, senior audiologists, audiologists and administrative staff. 

Divisional Manager: Julie Hale
Service Lead: Nupinder Bhogal

For more detailed information about the team, you can download the audiology service team structure here. 

When your child attends their first appointment, an audiologist will discuss your concerns and take a detailed history of their development. In order to help answer some of the questions it is useful to bring along your Personal Child Health Record (PCHR)- a little red book given to you shortly after your child's birth. 

We will then carry out a hearing assessment that is appropriate for your child’s age and needs. Children who are below 3 years of age are usually seen by two clinicians and it may not always be possible to get all the information in one session.  It is important to remember that hearing is tested in very quiet conditions. Towards the end of the session the clinician explain the assessment results. With your consent the Audiologist will send a copy of the report to your home address and to healthcare professionals involved in your child’s care within 10 working days. 

Please make sure your most up to date contact details and mobile number is available to us for future communication.

Click here to read an easy-read story board pdf, which explains the process.

Following on from a child’s hearing assessment a trial of hearing aid(s) may be suggested by the audiologist. There are two parts to a hearing aid: the hearing aid which sits at the back of the ear, and a custom-made ear mould.

The appointment for fitting of a hearing aid will have been made after discussion around the need for amplification. Once consent has been obtained we will need to take an impression of the child’s ear for the ear mould.

Occasionally, if appropriate, older children may be fitted with a hearing aid that consists of a smaller ear dome and thin tube that fits into the ear. However, it is important to note that the selection of hearing aids is dependent upon the child’s age and individual hearing needs.

If necessary an appointment will be made to take an impression of the child’s ear shape. This is to ensure the hearing aid can be fitted without discomfort. An appointment for the hearing aid fitting will either be made by the audiologist with parents at the time of the ear mould impression appointment or will be sent out once the ear mould is back. 

Please click here for detailed information about what happens at a hearing aid fitting appointment. 

Hearing tests we perform

Each test checks child in different ways to build up a total picture of your child’s hearing loss. The tests used depend on your child’s stage of development and It is not always possible to get all the information in one session.  It is important to remember that hearing is tested in very quiet conditions.

We use objective and /or behavioural tests.

Objective hearing tests

For these are tests child’s participation is not essential and they  are mainly used to assess hearing levels in babies and are similar to the hearing tests carried out when a baby is first born as a part of the Newborn Hearing Screening Programme (NHSP).

Oto-acoustic emissions (OAE)

A small earphone is placed into the baby’s ear and sounds are played to the cochlea (hearing organ). The response from the cochlea is then picked up by the earphone and recorded on to a computer screen. This test alone does not give an indication of hearing levels but is used in combination with other hearing tests.

Auditory brainstem response (ABR)

This test is carried out when children are sleeping and in a relaxed and settled state. Audiologist cleans areas behind the ear and places sticky pads behind each ear and one on the upper forehead. Small earphones are placed into the ears so that different pitches of sounds can be played at different levels. This test allows us to see how well the ear is responding to sound.

Tympanometry

This test tells us how well the eardrum is moving. A small ear tip is placed into the ear to check for any build-up of congestion behind the eardrum.  

Behavioural hearing tests

Behavioural hearing tests involves the use of toys , rewards and listening games to gain more information about children’s hearing levels as they get older.

Visual reinforcement audiometry (VRA)

This test is and usually suitable for children aged from six months. They are seated in the centre of the sound treated room either on their own chair or, if they’re younger, on a parent or guardian’s lap. Different sounds are then played either through loudspeakers or small earphones or headphones. The child is taught to turn their head every time they hear a sound and to look for a flashing light or moving toy as a reward

Speech tests

This test involves Audiologist asking child to identify /repeat toys pictures or objects to determine quietest listening levels and child’s ability to discriminate different sounds

Pure tone audiometry (PTA)

Children aged between two and-a-half years to five years will be asked to listen to different sounds through headphones and play a game. For example they may be asked to move toy people into a toy boat or put different coloured blocks on to a stand every time they hear a sound through the headphones.

Older children from school age onwards may be asked to press button every time they hear a sound through the headphones.

An audiogram is a chart used to record hearing tests results