Grant Award: $67,150
Principal Investigator: Susan Scollie, Ph.D.
Institution: Western University
Co-Investigators: Anita Christie, Ph.D. Western University, Angela Roberts, Ph.D. Western University
Project Summary:
Participation in fitness activities is an important wellness strategy for many Canadians, including those who are hard of hearing. However, surveys report specific hearing-related barriers to participating in fitness activities, often because of the noise, echo, and distances in these environments. In this project, we will develop new training methods for promoting hearing-accessible fitness classes, study important hearing technologies that can make hearing easier, and assess the benefits of a hearing-accessible fitness program on hearing function, cognitive abilities, and the satisfaction of the exercise participants.
By partnering with the Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging, we will have a pipeline to share our results through fitness instructor training programs that teach them how to provide hearing accessibility. Other training programs will help people who are hard of hearing to have effective strategies for hearing well at the gym. Our results will be shared globally, using free online sources and connections with clinics and consumer organizations to ensure maximum impact of our study.