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How the Children’s Hearing Help Fund, Hearing Aid Loan Bank for Infants and Toddlers works:
1) An audiologist confirms that a child (age 0 – 36 months) has a hearing loss.
2) By law, the audiologist refers the child and family to their local Early Steps early intervention services program. (CFR 303.321d) within 2 days of confirmation of hearing loss.
3) The local Early Steps Program assigns the child and family to a service coordinator and a SHINE (Serving Hearing Impaired Newborns Effectively) service provider that has special training in hearing impairment.
4) The audiologist recommends that the child be fit with amplification. If it appears as though the child may need to wait more than 4 weeks to be fit with hearing aids the audiologist can request loaner hearing aid(s).
5) The audiologist accesses the Loan Bank Inventory on this site and considers which of the hearing aids that are available would be most appropriate to meet the child’s current listening needs. Hearing aids are available on a first come, first served basis. Note: the Children’s Hearing Help Fund Hearing Aid Loan Bank is not staffed by personnel who are able to assist the audiologist in selecting the most appropriate hearing aid. The audiologist is urged to contact the hearing aid manufacturers for specific information.
(6) The audiologist emails info@childrenshearinghelpfund.com or calls 1-866-999-2443 and notifies the Hearing Aid Loan Bank which hearing aid(s) are requested by audiologist (name and place) for which child (initials only and birth date). On the web inventory, indication will be made that the requested hearing aids are no longer available for loan once email or telephone notification is received.
(7) The audiologist then has 2 full business days to provide a faxed copy of the signed parent loan agreement (Download Here). The name of the Early Steps service coordinator that is serving the family must appear on the signed parent loan agreement. If the fax is not received by the end of the second day, the website inventory will indicate that the hearing aids are available for loan.
(8) The Children’s Hearing Help Fund Hearing Aid Loan Bank will contact the local Early Steps Program to confirm that the child is enrolled in SHINE early intervention services and has a service coordinator that can assist the family in getting the hearing aids back to the Hearing Aid Loan Bank when the child receives his or her own amplification or after a maximum of 6 months of use, whichever comes first.
(9) The audiologist must contact the local Early Steps program to inform the child’s service coordinator that hearing aid(s) have been requested from the Hearing Aid Loan Bank.
(10) The Children’s Hearing Help Fund Hearing Aid Loan Bank will send the hearing aid(s), one package of (4) batteries, and one package of Comply Temporary Tubing Wraps to the audiologist, no later than the next business day after the fax was received. When you are ready to return the hearing aids to the Loan Bank, contact us and we will send you return postage sticker.
(11) The SHINE provider will be available to assist the family in following through with the audiologist's recommendations for daily monitoring of hearing instruments. Hearing aid listening kits are available for free at audiologist's request on the Audiological Follow-Up Report Form (Download Here). In conjunction with the audiologist, the SHINE provider can also be available to assist the family in using Comply Temporary Tubing Wraps during the hearing aid load period or if a child encounters substantial feedback problems that interfere with consistent hearing aid wear.
Click here for more information on the Comply Temporary Tubing Wraps.
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