Question
What is a Pocketalker ®?
Answer
A Pocketalker is a personal amplifier. It is a headset with an amplifying system. It looks like what a Walkman ® used to look like; a little box with a microphone on it wired to a headset. It provides some amplification for sound. It can be really useful particularly in an in-patient setting where you need some amplification, and there may not be an opportunity for the person to go to an audiologist to be fitted with hearing aids. This is a solution for "in the moment."
Nicole Marrone is an Assistant Professor at the University of Arizona. Dr. Marrone’s clinical and research interests are in the effects of hearing loss and rehabilitative audiology across the lifespan, with an emphasis on cognitive factors in hearing and outcomes measurement.