The British Society of Audiology (BSA) has developed new guidance that can help inform the practice of audiology professionals as they rehabilitate patients with hearing and balance problems and tinnitus. They developed the guidance in collaboration with the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Nottingham Hearing Biomedical Research Unit, the Ida Institute, the BSA Adult Rehabilitation Special Interest Group, the BSA Balance Interest Group, and members of the wider audiological community. The guidance recommends that effective rehabilitation is best achieved through a process that goes beyond addressing the sensory impairment and considers the patient within their social context and addresses the most important needs of the individual.
The guidelines have made a significant shift towards developing a more person-centered approach to hearing loss, which has fitted perfectly with Ida’s mission of addressing the psychological and social challenges of hearing loss and to implement patient-centered care practices. The guidance lists the Ida tools as a useful resource for hearing care professionals as they seek to better understand the patient perspective and incorporate patient needs, challenges and expectations into the rehabilitation process.
“This guidance brings together the latest scientific evidence concerning what rehabilitative strategies best improve people’s quality of life,” stated Professor Deborah Hall, Director of the National Institute for Health Research Nottingham Hearing Biomedical Research Unit.
As the United Kingdom’s National Health Service embraces a patient-centered care model of health care, the new BSA guidance recommends that patient-centered care principles should become the core of hearing care practice. Hearing care professionals should not refrain from counseling patients and helping them confront a range of psychological, social and emotional concerns. Instead, hearing care professionals can help patients learn more about their hearing and balance related challenges and take steps to better understand the realities of living with these challenges on a daily basis.
Recognizing the importance of patient-centered care and counseling, the guidance recommends that the four following principles should be central to all forms of audiological practice:
1) Identifying individual needs - Rehabilitation is a process that addresses the needs of each individual with hearing- and/or balance related problems.
2) Setting joint goals - Rehabilitation occurs through a problem-solving and goal-setting partnership.
3) Making shared, informed decisions - Rehabilitation requires a shared understanding between the audiology professional, the client, and significant others of the effects of the challenges, agreed strategies to reduce the effects, and how to effectively implement these strategies.
4) Supporting self-management - A client-centered approach can help the client to develop effective ways to help themselves.
“The intention is for audiology professionals to consider these principles as being at the heart of their practice, helping to guide their interactions with clients with a wide variety of needs and in a wide variety of contexts,” stated Dr. Daniel Rowan, Chair of the BSA’s Professional Practice Committee.
The guidance was presented at the 2012 British Society of Audiology Annual Conference at Nottingham Trent University on 5-7 September. The BSA was founded in 1966 and its main aim is to increase knowledge of hearing and balance and to enhance audiological practice through research, education, and the dissemination of information.