News
Breaking the Sound Barrier: using voice recognition software with
deafened people in the Nf2 clinic
Central Manchester and Manchester Children’s University Hospitals NHS Trust
Rachel Belk, Registered Genetic Counsellor Specialising in Deafness, Professor Gareth Evans, Professor of Medical Genetics, Dr Suson Huson, Consultant Clinical Geneticist, Rosemary Abbott, Specialist Advisor for Neurofibromatosis, Mary Perry, Registered Genetic Counsellor (Central Manchester and Manchester Children’s University Hospitals NHS Trust)
Neurofibromatosis type 2 (Nf2) is a dominantly inherited
genetic condition so can be passed on from parent to child. It causes benign (non-cancerous) tumours to grow on nerve cells. These usually cause total hearing loss, most commonly when the patient is in their 20s-30s, because of tumours on the hearing nerves. Other tumours can occur in the spine and the brain. To enable a patient to make informed and difficult decisions about their management, they need to be able to discuss detailed information with
healthcare professionals.
Most patients with profound acquired deafness will
learn to lip read and some learn sign language, but
these skills take time to acquire and even a good lip
reader can find it hard to understand everything
(especially complex medical information). Some
patients use a pen and paper to support understanding,
but this limits detail severely. Using a palentypist to
facilitate the conversation can be inaccurate and using
a palentypist or interpreter is expensive.
Breaking the Sound Barrier aims to develop and tailor
commercially available voice recognition software to
support face-to-face communication in a
multi-disciplinary clinic for patients with Nf2. Voice
recognition software has improved to offer 99 per
cent accuracy and keep up with the normal speed
of speech. During the patient’s appointment the
software would record and transcribe the consultant’s
side of the conversation onto screen. The patient can
read this to help them more easily understand and
partake in the conversation. The implementation of
this software would help to meet obligations under
the Disability Discrimination Act and improve the
quality of the service.
Image (top right): Rachel Belk, Registered Genetic Counsellor Specialising in Deafness (Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals NHS Trust) and Sir David Henshaw (Chair, NHS North West).
Image (bottom right): Rachel Belk, Registered Genetic Counsellor Specialising in Deafness (Central Manchester and Manchester Children's University Hospitals NHS Trust)