public accommodations for hearing loss

By Andrea Kaneb

red theater curtain and audience in silhouette to represent hearing advocacy in public places

The importance of hearing well in public gatherings

Public accommodations for hearing loss help us fully engage with all that a public gathering has to offer. We want to share the same entertainment or educational experience with everyone else in the room. Take a minute to picture yourself as you sit in a crowd at your favorite movie, play or community gathering. The interaction on the stage or screen draws you in. As you listen, the words cause thoughts to swirl in your head. They cause feelings to creep into your heart. Depending on the event, it might be joy or sadness or outrage or peacefulness. Moreover, you pick up on the emotions in the people around you. There’s energy in this shared experience.

Moreover, you pick up on the emotions in the people around you. There’s energy in this shared experience.

Now image this experience with hearing loss. Picture yourself behind glass, as you look in at the event, unable to grasp the words. You see the faces of the crowd and watch as they grip the arms of their chairs or throws their heads back in laughter. You are intrigued and mystified. What did they just hear? You wish you knew and try to guess. However, you do not know. Suddenly you feel all alone in a very crowded place. Your feelings of frustration or sadness are out of sync with those around you. As a result, you want to leave. There’s a good chance you won’t want to come back.

Have you had this experience? Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be this way. Public venues have special equipment just for people with hearing loss. There are wireless audio systems that deliver crystal clear sound from the venue’s sound system straight to us. Besides that, there is also technology for captioning. Unfortunately, I sat through years of not-quite-getting-it before learning about these accommodations.

Now there are times when I hear even better than people with normal hearing. Trust me when I say that feels pretty good. I hope you experience that as well.

The challenge

Large gatherings obviously require large spaces, such as auditoriums, arenas, theaters or classrooms. Consequently, this creates two big issues for people with hearing loss. First, the large size of the space creates acoustic challenges like reverberation. Words are hard to decipher when they bounce around the large space. Secondly, a lot of the audience ends up very far from the action. Sounds disperse and weaken as they travel through the air from the wall speakers. In fact, distance and reverb are two of the three big challenges for people with hearing loss. The other is noise and a crowd sometimes brings that as well. As a result of these issues, microphones and wall speakers alone cannot deliver words that are clear and strong enough.

There are other challenges as well. You need to arrive early and seek out staff who are aware of these public accommodations for hearing loss. In addition, the equipment needs to be clean, fully-charged and in good working order, which is not always the case. Lastly, if there is no loop system or telecoil, you might have to wear headphones that people will see. I hope you persevere through these challenges and enjoy the experience.

The solutions

public (aka large area assistive) listening systems
captions
visual information
ADA laws regarding public accommodations for hearing loss
strategy

Learn more and above all, please help raise awareness of public accommodations for hearing loss.

pubic listening systems for hearing loss

graphic of capture deliver and listen symbols

A public listening system for people with hearing loss is known as a “Large Area Assistive Listening System.” These systems alleviate the problems of distance and reverb. They capture the audio from microphones on the stage or movie. That audio is sent wirelessly to a receiver you have in hand or within telecoil-enabled hearing aids/CIs. You listen to the audio with hearing aids/CIs, earbuds or headphones. The difference from the weak and muffled sound from wall speakers to the crisp clear sound of these systems is quite impressive. I hope you’ll try it out next time you go to the movies, a play, arena or possibly your place of worship.

Bluetooth^® LE Audio and Auracast^™

Bluetooth^® LE Audio and it’s Auracast ^™ broadcast audio are a new Bluetooth^® capability emerging on the scene. Auracast holds great promise as a more universal public listening system with high quality sound, low latency and power consumption, less stigma and that does not require a costly installation.(If you own or purchase hearing aids without Bluetooth LE Audio capability, be sure to get a telecoil so you can tap into this system in the future.)

Induction Loop listening systems

Traditionally one of the most telecoil-user friendly systems is an induction loop listening system. With this system, people with telecoil-enabled hearing aids/CIs just click a button on their hearing aids/CIs. The audio comes directly into their hearing aids/CIs. There is no receiver box to pick up or return or maintain. This is a very discrete option with excellent audio quality. People without telecoil-enabled hearing aids do need to pick up a receiver.

FM and IR listening systems

FM and IR systems are quite common in public venues and the receivers look very similar. When you arrive at the venue, you must go to guest services or find staff who know about assistive listening devices. They will give you a receiver to borrow. You may need to leave your driver’s license. Before you walk away from them, turn the device on to make sure the batteries work. Ask for a neckloop too if you have hearing aids/CIs with telecoil. Ask for a captioning device too if you are at the movies!

WiFi listening systems

WiFi systems from companies like Listen Technologies have recently appeared in some venues. They send the audio from a public (large area assistive) listening system wirelessly to your smartphone. The venue must have receivers available for people without smartphones and a secure internet connection. There is some latency (audio delay) in these systems that is an issue, but keeps improving.

how to listen to this system

how to listen from a handheld receiver

By law, the receivers for public (large area assistive) listening systems must have a standard headphone jack. There are many ways to listen from the receiver. Learn more here.

seven wired listening devices like headphones earbuds neckloop and streamer

neckloops for telecoil-enabled hearing aids/CIs in a non-looped venue

If you have hearing aids/CIs with a telecoil, I recommend you use a neckloop to listen.. Public venues are required to have neckloops available. Plug the neckloop into the receiver and wear it around your neck. Set your hearing aids/CIs to the telecoil program. In this way, you use your hearing aids/CIs to listen. This is much better than removing them.

Hard-Wired Solutions

wired connections – jacks, plugs and adapters

Wired connections offer straightforward and reliable access to audio. Plugging in gives you the high quality sound you need to hear people, music, movies, and news. It is cleaner and stronger audio than sound from speakers that are across the room. It also lets you split audio when you need to use it in more [...]

Captions and Text

captions and text fill gaps in hearing

When I struggle to follow a discussion, captions and text fill gaps in my hearing. (I wouldn't hear nearly as well without my reading glasses.) Today, captions are available in a rapidly increasing and wide variety of situations. Above all, everyone with significant hearing loss should know about a service called Communication Access Real-Time translation [...]

Public Venues

movie theater accessibility for better entertainment

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Public Venues

listening systems in places of worship

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hearing advocacy for public places

My family attended a play at a grand historic theater. I was excited to see my daughter-in-law perform in “The Little Mermaid.” Ever since childhood, I've always loved plays. Unfortunately, [...]

ADA law on public accommodation

Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) provides for people who are deaf or hard of hearing to have equal access to public accommodations in places such as theaters, museums, schools, senior citizen centers, grocery stores, hotels, restaurants, banks, libraries, zoos, amusement parks, homeless shelters, funeral parlors and health spas. These places must provide auxiliary aids and services to ensure effective communication with people with hearing loss, with certain exceptions for undue burden.

Private clubs and religious organizations are exempt from the public accommodations requirements of the law, although many houses of worship voluntarily provide assistive listening systems for their congregations.

The 2010 Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Standards for Accessible Design sets accessibility standards minimum requirements for newly constructed or altered facilities, including updates on assistive listening systems, visual alarms, TTYs and hotel access.

The ADA 1991 Standards require assembly areas, where audible communication is integral to the use of the space, to provide an assistive listening system if they have an audio amplification system or an occupant load of 50 or more people and have fixed seating. The 2010 Standards at section 219 require assistive listening systems in spaces where communication is integral to the space and audio amplification is provided and in courtrooms.

2010 ADA Standards Section 706.3 requires that neckloops be provided so compatible receivers can interface with telecoils in hearing aids/CIs, noting that earbuds, earphones and headsets that must be worn over the ear are not compatible.

These regulations are enforced by the DOJ. Learn more at the DOJ informational website or the ADA National Network website. Contact your local Disability Rights Center or HLAA or ALDA for more information.

strategies for public venues

movies – infrared systems are popular at movie theaters so you must acquire a little black box called a receiver at the service desk. If you have hearing aids/CI with a telecoil, you can use a neckloop to listen through the receiver with your hearing aids/CI. While at the service desk, you can also get a special captioning devices.
classrooms – classrooms of over 50 fixed seats must have a public (large area assistive) listening system. A lot of smaller classrooms are not required to, so you must advocate for your needs with the student disability center or special education department. Accommodations may include a personal assistive listening system with a microphone the teacher wears, captioned videos, written materials, a note taker or CART, etc. based on your needs. Sit up front and ask the teacher to repeat comments from other parts of the room. PowerPoint and Google Slides have built-in captions available. A captioning app on your mobile device may help too.
live theater – if you are lucky, the theater has a loop system and you have a telecoil turned on by your hearing specialist in your hearing aid/CI, so you only need to push a button to activate it. If the system is FM or Infrared, you must acquire a little black box called a receiver at the concession or service desk, but you can plug in a neckloop to the receiver and use your telecoil if you have one. GalaPro is an app that provides captions in some large venues. Call in advance to ask about accommodations and possibly preferential seating if available.
community meetings – good use of microphones is less reliable in community meetings, where there are multiple and often inexperienced presenters speaking and audience comments. Speakers should be told in advance that they must use microphones, otherwise they are likely to ask “is it okay if I don’t use this microphone?” when they start talking and usually nobody wants to speak up at the point. The A/V person can be very helpful if you call ahead or arrive early.
jury duty/courtrooms – in general, there is a lack of awareness in some courtrooms on how to provide appropriate accommodations. If needed, an assistive listening system and CART must be provided so you should advocate for yourself.
stadiums/arenas – these venues often lack signage so people are not aware of the assistive listening system. You are likely to be very far away from the stage and an assistive listening system is very helpful so arrive early and go to the service desk for a receiver if needed. This is especially helpful for graduation ceremonies or rallies where a lot of dialog takes place, but also helpful for sporting events.
museums – may not be required to have a system unless they have an auditorium or planetarium type seating. Museums sometimes have a small FM assistive listening system you can pick up at the front desk that works are various points of interest. Some museums arrange special group tours with a docent using a microphone with a group assistive listening system.
places of worship/weddings/funerals – Places of worship are not required to have assistive listening systems but they often voluntarily install one if requested. Some have a loop system and WiFi is starting to appear, but in general FM systems are used very frequently and if so you must acquire a little black box called a receiver upon arrival. A place of worship has a steady user base coming each week so the system is likely to be better maintained, although some places find that people mistakenly take the receivers home with them, so more may need to be ordered. If used on a repeated basis, some people purchase their own receiver, so they don’t have to worry about arriving late and not getting one and/or for hygienic reasons. Some FM receivers have a channel-changing feature behind the battery door and you may need to search for the correct channel. Receivers are sometimes hard to locate and activate at a funeral with unfamiliar staff, so it may be best to place your own remote microphone linked to your hearing devices on the podium beforehand. Take advantage of written prayer books to follow along. Unfortunately, many people with hearing loss do not know ASL and it is often the only solution provided when hearing loss accommodation is requested even though other solutions like an assistive listening system and/or CART may be needed.