Though the concept of “Zoom fatigue” is known to many who are weary of remote connection with co-workers nearly two years in to the pandemic, for those with hearing loss, Zoom videoconferencing can make communication even more challenging than before, according to a recent article on the “Forbes” website.
People with hearing difficulties experience heightened self-reported depression, loneliness, and memory problems during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to an online survey of the over 70s.
Shari Eberts wrote an open letter—that turned into a petition with 58,000 signatures—asking video conferencing companies to remove the paywall from their captioning services.
The posting by NIDCD Director Debara L. Tucci acknowledges that masks tend to obscure the mouth and other facial features that deaf or hard-of-hearing individuals rely on for communication, as well as making the sound of speech potentially more distorted.
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Many deaf advocates are recommending greater use of sign language, which can be a safer way to communicate during a pandemic since there are no droplets released during its use.
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ChatableApps announced the launch of “the world’s first universal hearing aid, using neuroscience-led artificial intelligence to enable those suffering from hearing loss to hear one-to-one conversations clearly, using an everyday smartphone and a standard pair of earbuds.”
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COVID-19 can present additional obstacles to patients who are deaf or have a hearing loss.
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According to “Quartz,” Zoom fatigue can include difficulty understanding what is being said with pixilated video and choppy audio, or a struggle to understand non-verbal cues from others, which is something the hard-of-hearing community has to do while lipreading or viewing sign language.
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Tightened visitors’ restrictions in hospitals may mean that interpreters will be barred from medical appointments, in which case, the deaf person may need to rely on app-based video interpreting services.
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Another challenge during the pandemic, is finding personal protective equipment for interpreters, such as masks with transparent windows that will allow their lips to be seen by patients.
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Borah Elementary is the first school in Northern Idaho to offer a preschool classroom incorporating the “Total Communication” teaching method for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.
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Lip movements affect the perception of voice information from the ears when listening to someone speak, but native Japanese speakers are mostly unaffected by lip movements, or lipreading, when listening to another speaker, according to new evidence from a neuroimaging study conducted in Japan.
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