The World Health Organisation notes that ear and hearing
problems are one of the most common health issues globally
and World Hearing Day 2023 is drawing urgent attention to
the need for ear and hearing care to be an integral part of
primary health care to help prevent, identify, and manage
hearing loss.
Two initiatives that are working towards
this goal are; the World Health Organisation’s ‘Ear and
Hearing Care for All’ training manual and handbook for
Primary Health providers (GP’s), and ‘The living
guidelines for cochlear implantation in adults,’ produced
by the Global CI Task Force. Both aim to help health
professionals in supporting clients with hearing loss,
identifying their needs, and referring them to appropriate
providers, such as cochlear implant programmes when hearing
aids are no longer enough.
The World Health
Organisation training manual and accompanying handbook for
Primary Health Care providers (GP’s) titled “WHO Primary Ear
and Hearing Care Manuals,” is a practical guide for GP
practices to prevent, identify, and manage hearing
loss.
Michel Neeff, Clinical Director of the Northern
Cochlear Implant Programme, and CI surgeon, explained that
“With both of these documents, the training manual and
Living guidelines, adults living with hearing loss and
clinicians treating hearing loss will have consistent
evidence-based advice about how to identify, treat and refer
to an appropriate provider, be that an audiologist for a
hearing aid, or the cochlear implant programmes for
assessment.”
Lee Schoushkoff, CEO of the Pindrop
Foundation, stresses the importance of establishing a
consistent approach to optimizing care for the 1 in 5 adults
who may not benefit adequately from hearing aids and need
access to cochlear implant technology. “Unfortunately, in
Aotearoa NZ, like many countries, hearing assessments are
not part of routine health check-ups for adults. For those
who do receive hearing checks and are diagnosed with severe
to profound Hearing Loss, only some are being referred to
the cochlear implant programmes. These initiatives will help
.”
The Living Guidelines Global Task Force encourages
health professionals, individuals, and families to provide
feedback on the living guidelines for adult cochlear
implantation. The World Health Organisation is encouraging
people to download and share ‘The Primary Ear and Hearing
Care’ Training Manual and Handbook for GP’s with their
health centres. All are available and can be accessed on the
Pindrop Foundation website at: https://www.pindrop.org.nz/articles/world-hearing-day-2023/
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