Seafarers Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1992 – Guide to the Assessment of the Degree of Permanent Impairment Edition 3.0
190WPI ratings from within [Table 7.4: Speech](#Table_7_4) may not be combined with each other.
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190 WPI ratings from within Table 7.4: Speech may not be combined with each other.
191 If the major problem is one of audibility, intelligibility, or functional efficiency of speech, the criteria appropriate to the area should be used to assess impairment.
192 If there are problems in more than one area, each area (audibility, intelligibility, and functional efficiency) should be assessed, and the highest value selected as the WPI rating.
Table 7.4: Speech
- %WPI Criteria
- Audibility Intelligibility Functional efficiency
- 0 Audible in most situations, although may require effort. Generally intelligible, although some sounds are difficult and some repetition may be needed. Speech can be sustained except for slowness and some hesitancy.
- 10 Audible in quiet situations but problems with audibility in noisy environments. Intelligible although inaccuracies may be frequent and there are obvious difficulties with articulation. Speech can be sustained but is often discontinuous, interrupted, hesitant and/or slow.
- 15 Voice tires rapidly, tends to become inaudible after a few seconds.Volume generally low. Intelligible to family and close friends but strangers find speech generally unintelligible even with repetition. Difficulty sustaining speech for more than brief periods even when speaking very slowly.
- 20 Volume very low.Can whisper or produce volume that can be heard only with difficulty by close listener orby telephone. Mostly unintelligible, except for a few words. Laboured speech.Rate of sustained speech impractically slow.
- 30 Inaudible. Unintelligible. No sustained speech.
7.5 Air passage defects
193 Table 7.5: Air passage defects assesses permanent impairment relating to defects of the air passages. Impairments of the lower airways and lung parenchyma are dealt with in Chapter 2 – The respiratory system.
194 Permanent tracheostomy, or other respiratory stoma, attracts a permanent WPI rating of 25% which may be combined with other values derived from Table 7.5: Air passage defects.