Audiology Test Facilities
It is believed that one sixth of all Australians have noise related ear damage, and 3.6 million have significant hearing loss. The total economic impact to the country is estimated to be many millions of dollars per annum and the numbers are expected to increase over the next 30 years.
Testing and treating people with hearing issues can be beset by noise control problems. Audiology testing facilities have to be isolated from external noise and require carefully controlled internal acoustics. The space must be relaxing and comfortable for patients, whether they be children, adults or the elderly and well equipped with electrical and electronic devices, air conditioning and other services.
The acceptable background noise levels for tests are defined in bodies of legislation (for example ISO 8253-1) but the necessary level can vary greatly depending on the condition itself.. Many types of hearing impairment as well as the tests to assess them, are profoundly sensitive to environmental and background noises – whether external or internal to the testing space. Noise affected test results can potentially create years of problems for the patients if mis-interpreted, so first class soundproofing and acoustic control in audiology test spaces is absolutely vital.
COVID-19 altered the infection control requirements of audiology units which although previously vigorous, were not at the same intensive level as operating theatres and surgical wards. These new requirements present a host of practical problems and architectural re-designs for single patient access into easily cleanable testing spaces.
Units require washable vinyl flooring and antibacterial tiling and wall surfaces that are easy to disinfect. Treating any conditioned and circulating air is extremely important to prevent the spread of airborne covid particles. This can be done with ultraviolet light units, but their installation must not affect the unit’s acoustics. High performance acoustic doors will require antibacterial handles and hand-washing facilities.
IAC Acoustics can provide acoustically shielded audiology test rooms that accommodate all of these requirements. Facilities range from small soundproof booths that can be used immediately on delivery, up to full size custom-designed audiology suites. IAC provides a full turnkey fit-out of services and accessories for these projects, all with a singular acoustic performance guarantee.
Installation is a quick and clean operation, partly because of the pre-tested and dry-fit modular design of our audiology solutions. For the same reason, specifying more demanding acoustic parameters that will be required for certain kinds of tests is easy to pre-design – avoiding lengthy development later onsite. Our units are also easy to relocate at a later date if your clinic or educational institution is redesigned.
Mobile audiology units remain a cost-effective and safe option during pandemics because they make it easier to manage multiple health screening services, while avoiding patients attending main hospital buildings. Mobile units are also flexible: they can be expanded into full diagnostic centres or repurposed as X-ray units or visual test centres at a later date. That flexibility is an opportunity to improve long term cost/benefit returns on the investment. Mobile units are pre-designed to meet exacting audiology testing standards and may well be the most sensible way to provide the audiology facilities that Australia needs – pandemic or no pandemic. If mobile units will meet your requirements, we can deliver them to your site fully constructed, complete and ready to use.
Guy Pulley
+61 (0) 2 8781 0430
guy.pulley@iac-australia.com.au