How do you explain person-centered care in a way that resonates with people with hearing loss and encourages them to play a more active role in their own care? That was a question raised at the 2019 meeting of the Person-Centered Hearing Network (PCHN) and echoed by friends and colleagues in the hearing care community. The solution? We’re All Ears, a new campaign that breaks down the elements of person-centered care in a way that speaks directly to people with hearing loss.
We’re All Ears is a simple phrase with two important messages. Firstly, that hearing is an issue that impacts all of us directly or indirectly; we’re in this together. Secondly, it acts as the voice of a hearing care professional expressing that they are listening and that what the client has to say is important.
Be seen. Be heard. Tell your story. Be open. Take part. Be clear. These are the core messages of the campaign and are the client-facing versions of the six elements of person-centered care.
“Great hearing care requires teamwork between a hearing care professional and their client,” says Ida’s Managing Director, Lise Lotte Bundesen. “Sometimes clients don’t know exactly how to be more involved or even if they are supposed to be. This campaign empowers people with hearing loss to take more active roles in their care by presenting six ways their participation can create stronger partnerships. It’s a call to action and a helping-hand.”
During this year’s PCHN meeting, Nerina Scarinci, Associate Professor and Head of Speech Pathology at the University of Queensland, said, “Patients need to be informed about person-centered care so they can potentially lead the change in this area. Patients may actually be the key to unlocking the potential of person-centered care in clinical services — and to have a project come out supporting this is just incredible.”
Caitlin Barr, CEO of Australian patient organization Soundfair, adds, “Person-centered care matters to people with hearing loss, but the way professionals talk about it doesn’t always make sense to the public. The We’re All Ears campaign tackles this wonderfully. By using everyday language and offering the public a reason to expect a standard of care, this campaign will give people confidence to expect and value quality skills and support from hearing care providers – that is, to value and expect person-centered hearing care.”
The campaign posters, videos, and graphics are freely available to share on your website or social media, frame in your office, or to send to someone you think needs to hear the message. The road to better hearing can be a difficult journey; We’re All Ears makes it easier for hearing care professionals and people with hearing loss to help each other along the way.