Capturing children’s voices to inform child-centred outcomes in paediatric hearing care
Background: Outcome measurement in paediatric hearing care is typically defined by adults, relying heavily on parent/clinician reports. These approaches may overlook what deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children themselves consider important. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child affirms children’s right to express their views in matters affecting them.
Aim: To explore DHH children’s perspectives on what hearing health services should measure to understand their progress.
Method/approach: Through a qualitative participatory study design, we hosted child-friendly focus groups with DHH children aged 6–12 years. Activities adapted from the Voice of the Child Toolkit supported communication through drawing, writing, and discussion. Two focus groups have been conducted and analysed using inductive thematic analysis, with four more workshops anticipated. The Royal Children’s Hospital Human Research Ethics Committee approved the study.
Results/findings: Preliminary findings from six children suggest they viewed their progress through everyday experiences of belonging, communication access, and participation. Children described pride in school, friendships, and activities as central markers of progress. They highlighted the importance of early self-advocacy, identified gaps in system-level support and evaluated healthcare experiences through whether they felt listened to, understood, and respected.
Conclusion: Young DHH children articulated priorities related to inclusion, communication access, and hearing health care. Embedding children’s perspectives in research/service evaluation strengthens child-centred hearing care and supports children’s rights to be heard in decisions affecting them.
Implications for children and families: Your experiences and ideas matter. When you share what helps you feel included, understood, and confident, services can better support what matters most in your everyday lives.
Implications for practitioners: You can strengthen child-centred hearing care by directly engaging children in conversations about their experiences and priorities, and by using participatory approaches that support children to express their views.
Funding: The Australian National Child Hearing Health Outcomes Registry is funded by the NHMRC (GNT2015735).
Keywords: deaf, hard of hearing, outcomes, children’s voices, participatory research
This presentation relates to the following United Nations Sustainable Development Goals: