Exploring the impact of video and in person counselling on parental education about new-born hearing screening

Abstract

The infant’s ability to develop speech and language can adversely affected by hearing loss which in addition affects their quality of life. Early new born hearing screening plays a major role in detecting any hearing issues. The negative consequences of hearing loss on the child, family, and society can be prevented or reduced through early identification of hearing loss. The present study explores how new born hearing screening, along with follow-up counselling methods can help identify and manage hearing loss in children. A total of 300 infants were screened at a maternity hospital in Hyderabad region, out of where 50 parents were randomly selected to receive counselling about the screening results. The study compared two counselling methods: in-person counselling and video counselling. All the parents received a comprehensive counselling and then given a questionnaire. The results showed that parents who received video counselling were better at remembering the information and more likely to schedule follow-up screenings. Finally, authors concludes that video counselling is more effective than in-person counselling when it comes to encouraging follow-up.