HearZA is a new hearing test app that accurately tests your hearing and lets you test two other people as well. The app was designed by South Africans.
HearZA was created by a team of South Africans to help combat loss of hearing and to accurately test a persons hearing from the comfort of their own home. The hearing test app offers 3 free tests so someone can do the test on themselves and two friends or family members.
So far the app has tested over 40,000 people and is available in over 25 different countries. The app is beneficial to any person 16 and older. In South Africa nearly three million people suffer from permanent, disabling hearing loss. The lead inventor of the app Prof De Wet Swanepoel says,
“Since it’s invisible, people don’t see it or appreciate the effects of hearing loss. In children it is a major reason for poor speech and language development and of academic failure as a result, in adults it is associated with significant socio-emotional difficulties, depression and a threefold increased risk of dementia.”
The project was started in 2013 and the beta testing of the app was launched on World Hearing Day in 2016.
“The app is used in various settings from screenings in schools, early childhood development centres and primary health care clinics, to monitoring TB patients for drug-induced hearing loss and monitoring hearing status in occupational health settings”
“Based on the geolocation captured for each test and the integrated cloud-based data solution, a text message or email can be sent to the person tested or their parents providing the test outcome and closest hearing health provider in cases of a referral.”
The app takes the results from the test and converts it into a personal hearing score that can be monitored over time. Once the test is done and the three free credits are used up a small fee is required to do any more tests on the app. Every year on the date of the original test a free check up test becomes available to monitor any possible changes in the hearing.
The app is available to be downloaded by Android and iOS applications and is only two minutes long. This is a great step forward for South African health care as it is freely available and can benefit many people who would otherwise not have had access to a test like this.
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