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An Australian app for older people is an international digital health award finalist

How is an interactive app being used in aged care settings to improve health outcomes?

<p>By using a touch-screen device with an interactive game-like app, older Australians can test their hearing and get support if needed. [Source: Olivia Baird; supplied]</p>

By using a touch-screen device with an interactive game-like app, older Australians can test their hearing and get support if needed. [Source: Olivia Baird; supplied]

Key points:

  • An Australian hearing assessment app called Sound Scouts is helping older Australians in rural and remote areas get support for possible hearing loss
  • The app has recently been adapted for use in aged care homes and has been nominated as a finalist in an international digital health event ViVe 2025 due to its accessibility to older people
  • Eight in 10 Australians aged 80 years and over have some form of hearing loss

An Australian hearing assessment app is making waves on a global scale while also helping improve health outcomes for older Australians in rural areas. 

The Sound Scouts app — which has previously been used by children — is being trialled in aged care settings, with positive results as a low-cost, accessible option to conduct hearing assessments.

The hearing assessment uses interactive game-like tests to engage the user as well as simple instructions to increase accessibility. The app can be downloaded on any touch-screen device, allowing users across the country to access the assessment, regardless of location.

Researchers found that people in rural areas are more likely to wait longer to get hearing aids after the onset of hearing loss, compared to people in urban areas. 

On average, people in rural areas waited an average of 10 years after initial hearing loss before getting hearing aids, compared to eight years in urban areas.

In rural and remote areas of Australia, barriers to accessing healthcare services include workforce shortages, a lack of continuity of care, requiring self-transportation and long waiting times for appointments.

One in three older Australians live in remote or rural areas as per recent data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare

Eight in 10 Australians aged 80 years and over have some form of hearing loss. Adults with hearing loss may exhibit less obvious signs, such as asking someone to repeat themselves, feeling tired after noisy social interactions, attending fewer social events and not being able to hear someone when talking on the phone.

Sound Scouts CEO Carolyn Mee highlighted the technological changes in healthcare and why creating a hearing assessment app is important to ensure no one gets left behind. 

“As healthcare marches toward full digitisation, integrating health equity considerations into technology and data practices — or ‘techquity’ — is increasingly important to reducing outcome disparities and systemic inequities,” she said.

Hearing Screening for Aged Care

Sound Scouts

The Sound Scout hearing assessment app was created in collaboration with the University of Newcastle and Maroba Caring Communities; Aged Care Research and Industry Innovation Australia funded the project.

It was recently announced that the Sound Scout app is a finalist in the United States digital health event ViVe 2025 as it is helping to improve health equity for older people through technology. 

Aged Care Research and Industry Innovation Australia Chief Executive Officer Reuben Jacob praised the efforts of those who worked on the Sound Scout project and the impact the app has had on older people.

“Seeing the Sound Scouts project getting recognised on the global stage for the incredible impact that this type of software can have in aged care is an amazing outcome,” he said.

“Awareness of the positive impacts that technology can have on the lives of those both living in and working in aged care is increasing and Aged Care Research and Industry Innovation Australia is excited to see the empowerment that can be created by digital transformation across the sector.”

However, Ms Mee emphasised the other ways this simple hearing assessment technology can transform the lives of older Australians.

“Providing this app for use with older people can minimise social isolation, reduce the fall risk and potentially reduce the onset and progress of cognitive decline. It is an application that, once adopted, can have a real impact on the well-being of adults of all ages, all over the world,” she said.

The proven links between age-related hearing loss, dementia and mental health highlight the need for early detection, treatment and a proactive approach to protecting one’s hearing and preventing vulnerability as a person ages.

Approximately 3.6 million Australians have some form of hearing loss, with this number expected to increase to an estimated 7.8 million people by 2060 in Australia.

The app uses engaging graphics and simple instructions to prevent cognitive decline from impacting the hearing assessment results. [Source: Olivia Baird; supplied]

 

While the Sound Scouts app is free to download on Google Play or the App Store, you must purchase credits to access your hearing assessment results. One credit, currently priced at $34.99, allows you to access four test sessions on a single device. 

Three different hearing tests are available, namely: ‘speech in quiet,’ ‘tone in noise’ and ‘speech in noise.’ These can be trialled before paying for credits. 

If the Sound Scouts hearing assessment results indicate you may have hearing loss, the report will provide you with suggestions of what to do next. This may include visiting an audiologist for an official hearing assessment. 

If you are found to have a hearing problem, the Hearing Services Program assists Australians, with a voucher system available for Australians aged 26 years and over. The overall goals of the program are to help eligible Australians access hearing services and devices, as well as improve their community engagement. 

Through the program, approximately 102,000 clients received hearing services in September 2024, according to the latest data from the Department of Health and Aged Care.

Check your eligibility for the Hearing Services Program through the eligibility quiz on the Department of Health and Aged Care website.

Read the Aged Care Guide to learn more about protecting your hearing and managing hearing loss. Additionally, for tips on how to talk to someone with hearing loss, such as an older loved one, please refer to the Better Health Channel’s guide to communication and how hearing loss can affect one’s life.

 

What are your thoughts on having your hearing tested using an app?

Let the team at Talking Aged Care know on social media. 

For more information and news in the aged care industry, subscribe to our free newsletter.

 

Relevant content:

New super standards could save you hundreds of dollars a year

Brother Thomas Oliver Pickett wins 2025 Senior Australian of the Year

Urgent warning: Senior Cards scam targeting older Australians

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