A psychologist has given scathing testimony about the lack of provisions for screening and managing children with hearing loss in Northern Territory juvenile detention, while other specialists say decades have passed without significant improvement.

Key points: Psychologist says hearing loss communication problems misconstrued as non-compliance

Psychologist says hearing loss communication problems misconstrued as non-compliance Several experts say staff training, testing for hearing loss in juvenile detention centres inadequate

Several experts say staff training, testing for hearing loss in juvenile detention centres inadequate Deafness contributes to "cycle of disadvantage that leads children into justice system": audiologist

Darwin psychologist Dr Damien Howard made the statement in a submission to the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory last week, which heard deafness in the prison population is widespread.

Dr Howard said the prevalence of hearing loss in Aboriginal communities was higher than in non-Aboriginal communities, and it usually began with prolonged ear infections in children.

He said this factor, as well as noise-induced hearing loss experienced by young children, were contributing to an "alarming new wave of preventable hearing loss that would lead to the increased prevalence of hearing loss among Aboriginal people".

With the social interaction problems that arise from hearing loss, such as isolation and issues with psycho-social development, Dr Howard said children may also have issues communicating with police, in court and with correctional officers.

Authorities 'failing to address' hearing loss problem

The psychologist said communication problems caused by hearing loss tend to be misconstrued as cultural differences, and in the corrections context, as non-compliance.

"This is a major factor in why this important issue remains invisible and points to the importance of cross-cultural education for those working with Aboriginal people, incorporating information on hearing loss contribution to communication problems and interacting with cultural and linguistic factors also influencing communication," Dr Howard said in his submission.

Dr Howard said he had been researching the area since the early 1990s, and as fair as he was aware, there was no testing for hearing loss in juvenile detention centres, nor any training of staff to accommodate their needs.

He also said he was not aware of any testing for deafness by the Department of Children and Families and that the department as a whole had no awareness of hearing loss issues as relating to psycho-social health, and no skills to address it.

Dr Howard and peer Jody Barney had lobbied the Territory Government for more than 20 years, and were sharply critical of the Government's response over the years.

"While these efforts have, at times, received some positive response from Northern Territory government agencies, this has been rare and in no instance followed through to result in improved service provision," Dr Howard said in the statement.

"In terms of provision of services by Government in relation to addressing the outcomes of hearing loss that contribute to overrepresentation of engagement of Aboriginal youth, in my view, there has been minimal tangible improvement since when I commenced publishing research in the area, and attempted to lobby government, in the early 1990s."

Ms Barney, a deaf Indigenous community consultant, said she understood many boys at Don Dale Youth Detention Centre did not understand why they were there and what their rights were — an experience that was compounded in detainees with hearing loss.

"As a starting point, there [should be] a requirement for assessments and induction processes upon intake, which should identify any hearing loss issues and inform young people of their rights and obligations in a manner that takes into account their hearing loss," Ms Barney said.

Many prisoners 'unaware they've suffered hearing loss'

NT research audiologist Dr Judith Boswell agreed hearing loss was a big problem in prisons and was often mistaken for other issues like a lack of English, wilfulness or deliberately ignoring officers.

She said screening for hearing problems in Territory prisons would be highly beneficial.

"Sometimes prisoners don't know they've got a hearing loss. They might just perceive themselves as finding it hard to understand and it may be the staff around prisons may be thinking this person isn't understanding me because they don't have solid English skills," Dr Boswell told the ABC.

Dr Boswell said deafness could contribute to a cycle of disadvantage that leads children into the justice system, and in her three decades working with Indigenous ear health in the Territory, not a great deal had improved.

"In some remote communities virtually all Aboriginal babies develop ear disease in the first three months of life," she said.

"So the fact it starts very early means it quickly becomes chronic, it doesn't recover spontaneously and it can become quite resistant to the treatments that have been offered."