Newborn hearing screening being carried out by Chime

This service is usually delivered by Health Visitors but since the outbreak of the crisis they have had to cease their routine visits. As a result, the screening coordinator asked Chime if we could volunteer to cover this service as 1-2 babies in every 1000 are born with hearing impairment, which, if picked up early, can offer the choice of early intervention which can have a huge impact on a child's speech and language development.

We have seven volunteers from Chime screening babies on postnatal wards seven days a week as well as setting up some clinics in order to offer the screen to any babies who have not been seen immediately after birth.

“The actual job of screening babies is just wonderful, we are so honoured to get to meet all of these beautiful new babies and their brave mums. We all keep having moments where we are so emotional seeing how the current situation affects each family, we have all had a couple of tears with some really lovely mums!” Anna Trotter, Audiologist, Chime Hearing.

Working on postnatal wards alongside the midwives has been an absolute pleasure, they have been so friendly and welcoming and helped us to understand their routines so that we might slot in to offer our service alongside theirs. We could not have been so successful in this without their significant help and we are so grateful.