Department of Vulnerabilities and Social Medicine, Center for Primary Care and Public Health, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Psychiatric Liaison Service, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland.
Front Public Health. 2021 Apr 28;9:615474. doi: 10.3389/fpubh.2021.615474. eCollection 2021.
D/deaf and hard of hearing populations are at higher risk for experiencing physical and mental health problems compared to hearing populations. In addition, they commonly encounter barriers to accessing and benefiting from health services, which largely stem from challenges they face in communicating with healthcare providers. Healthcare providers commonly lack tailored communication skills in caring for D/deaf and hard of hearing populations, which lead to difficulties and dissatisfaction for both staff and D/deaf and hard of hearing communities. This research project aims to develop and evaluate a capacity-building intervention for healthcare providers with the goal of increasing their awareness of D/deaf and hard of hearing individuals' experiences with the healthcare system, their distinct needs, and improving their capacity to communicate effectively with this patient population. This research project features a participative action research design using qualitative and quantitative methods. Consistent with participative action research, the study will actively involve the target populations, key stakeholders and representative associations. The intervention will be developed and tested through iterative phases. The Integrated Model of Training Evaluation and Effectiveness will guide prospective evaluation of the intervention. The latter will involve qualitative and quantitative assessments in participants before and after the intervention and at 6-months follow-up. Results will contribute to research aimed at decreasing barriers to accessing and benefiting from healthcare services for D/deaf and hard of hearing individuals. Findings will be presented to representative associations and political authorities, as well as disseminated at research conferences and in peer-reviewed journals.
聋人和重听人群与听力人群相比，更有可能面临身心健康问题。此外，他们在获得和受益于医疗服务方面常常面临障碍，这主要源于他们在与医疗服务提供者沟通方面面临的挑战。医疗服务提供者在照顾聋人和重听人群时通常缺乏针对性的沟通技巧，这导致工作人员和聋人和重听人群都感到困难和不满。
本研究项目旨在为医疗服务提供者开发和评估一项能力建设干预措施，目的是提高他们对聋人和重听人群在医疗系统中的体验、他们的特殊需求的认识，并提高他们与这一患者群体有效沟通的能力。
本研究项目采用参与式行动研究设计，结合定性和定量方法。与参与式行动研究一致，该研究将积极涉及目标人群、利益攸关方和代表性协会。干预措施将通过迭代阶段进行开发和测试。培训评估和效果综合模型将指导对干预措施的前瞻性评估。后者将包括参与者在干预前后和 6 个月随访时的定性和定量评估。
研究结果将有助于减少聋人和重听人群获得和受益于医疗服务的障碍。研究结果将提交给代表性协会和政治当局，并在研究会议和同行评议期刊上发表。
