The Efficacy of NAVAYESH Parent- based Aural Habilitation on Communication Abilities of Deaf Infants who are in Cochlear Implantation Waiting List: An Experience of Early Intervention on Infants with Deafness

Since cochlear implants can now be provided for children before the age of 1 year, the development of a family-centered habilitation program is essential for this age group. The present study was done to investigate the effectiveness of NAVAYESH” auditory habilitation program on communication skills of cochlear implantation candidates. 32 mothers along with their 3-12 months deaf infants participated in a cochlear implant program. They received a new developed auditory habilitation program. The program was developed based on a need assessment from surveys of experts and parents of deaf children, and a review of common habilitation intervention programs. To investigate communication skills, auditory perception and speech production, Communication and Symbolic Behavior Scales Developmental Profile (CSBS DP), Categories of Auditory Performance (CAP) & Speech Intelligibility Rating Scale (SIR) were used respectively. Data indicated that Navayesh” auditory habilitation program improved communication, auditory perception, and speech production scores in deaf children participated in the study. Follow-up study also indicated the stability of this effectiveness in improvement dependent variables of the study. The use of this program is recommended in early habilitation centers for deaf children