Teachers' Self-Perception of Voice Before and After a Voice Awareness Program.

PURPOSE: To assess teachers' voice self-perception before and after participating in a voice awareness program.

MATERIAL AND

METHODS

This interventional, descriptive, quantitative study, approved by the Human Research Ethics Committee under CAAE: 10719513.5.0000.5188, included 33 elementary and middle school teachers of both sexes from municipal schools in northeastern Brazil. The intervention had three stages, applying the Vocal Health and Hygiene Questionnaire (VHHQ) and the Voice-Related Quality-of-Life (V-RQOL) in the first one; conducting four vocal health workshops with theoretical and practical content in the second; and reapplying the VHHQ and V-RQOL in the third stage to compare results before and after the intervention.

RESULTS

Most participants were females, whose mean age neared the end of the vocal efficiency period. The protocols indicated that the voice awareness program positively impacted the study participants, with better voice perception and greater knowledge about factors harmful to vocal health.

CONCLUSIONS

The research demonstrated the importance of informative programs on vocal health by exchanging knowledge, improving voice-related quality of life, and preventing vocal disorders.