Department of Family Medicine, University of Michigan/Michigan Medicine, Ann Arbor.
Department of Population Health Science, University of Mississippi Medical Center, Jackson.
J Speech Lang Hear Res. 2022 Oct 17;65(10):3633-3645. doi: 10.1044/2022_JSLHR-22-00052. Epub 2022 Aug 15.
Nearly 20% of U.S. Americans report a hearing loss, yet our current health care system is poorly designed and equipped to effectively care for these individuals. Individuals with hearing loss report communication breakdowns, inaccessible health information, reduced awareness and training by health care providers, and decreased satisfaction while struggling with inadequate health literacy. These all contribute to health inequities and increased health care expenditures and inefficiencies. It is time to reframe the health care system for these individuals using existing models of best practices and accessibility to mitigate inequities and improve quality of care.
A review of system-, clinic-, provider-, and patient-level barriers, along with existing and suggested efforts to improve care for individuals with hearing loss, are presented.
These strategies include improving screening and identification of hearing loss, adopting universal design and inclusion principles, implementing effective communication approaches, leveraging assistive technologies and training, and diversifying a team to better care for patients with hearing loss. Patients should also be encouraged to seek social support and resources from hearing loss organizations while leveraging technologies to help facilitate communication.
The strategies described introduce actionable steps that can be made at the system, clinic, provider, and patient levels. With implementation of these steps, significant progress can be made to more proactively meet the needs of patients with hearing loss. Presentation Video: https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.21215843.
近 20%的美国成年人存在听力损失，但我们现有的医疗保健系统在为这些人群提供有效护理方面设计和配备不当。存在听力损失的个体报告存在沟通障碍、无法获取健康信息、医疗服务提供者的认知和培训不足，以及健康素养水平较低导致的满意度降低等问题。所有这些都导致了健康不平等，增加了医疗保健支出和效率低下。现在是时候利用现有的最佳实践和可及性模型来重新构建这些人群的医疗保健系统，以减轻不平等现象并改善护理质量。
本文回顾了系统、诊所、提供者和患者层面的障碍，以及现有的和建议的改善听力损失患者护理的措施。
这些策略包括改善听力损失的筛查和识别、采用通用设计和包容性原则、实施有效的沟通方法、利用辅助技术和培训、以及多样化团队以更好地为听力损失患者提供护理。患者还应被鼓励在利用技术帮助促进沟通的同时，从听力损失组织中寻求社会支持和资源。
所述策略提出了可在系统、诊所、提供者和患者层面采取的可行步骤。实施这些步骤可以为更积极地满足听力损失患者的需求带来显著进展。演示视频：https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.21215843。
