The Bellevue Arts Museum has installed hearing aid compatible technology.
When over 36‐million Americans of all ages are experiencing hearing loss, it’s time for public spaces to take action and promote hearing accessibility. Bellevue Arts Museum, the Pacific Northwest’s center for the exploration of art, craft and design, in partnership with Let’s Loop Seattle, is one of the first public venues in Washington State to be doing just that.
From now on, art lovers using a hearing aid will be “in the [hearing] loop” at Bellevue Arts Museum, thanks to the installation of an induction hearing loop in two key locations: at Guest Services, where Museum visitors are greeted, and the Auditorium, the Museum’s main space for educational and community programs, such as its popular Free First Friday Lecture. A “hearing loop” is a simple copper cable installed around a room, which transmits sound from a microphone electromagnetically, directly to the hearing aid user’s ear. A telecoil, present in about 70 percent of hearing aids and all cochlear implants used today, wirelessly picks up that electromagnetic signal from the loop. With a simple push of a button on a hearing aid or cochlear implant, the telecoil is activated and clear sound is broadcast directly to the listener’s ear. No additional equipment is needed.
Bellevue Arts Museum 510 Bellevue Way NE Bellevue, WA 98004
www.bellevuearts.org