Telehealth films

Stage: Maintenance

Recommended tools: Living Well (online) and My Hearing Explained

Mr Spurr spent most of his working life exposed to background noise, much of it without any protection for his hearing. Priya, his audiologist, believes this is the primary cause of his hearing loss.

Mr Spurr had been wearing National Health Service hearing aids for six years before coming to Priya’s clinic and has been seeing her for about a year. Prior to this appointment, we see Mr and Mrs Spurr fill out Living Well online to identify the communication situations where he is still struggling. Their answers guide the discussion in the appointment, where we also see Priya use My Hearing Explained in conjunction with Living Well to remind the couple what Mr Spurr’s hearing was like when she first tested it.

Both Mr and Mrs Spurr are comfortable talking about the communication problems caused by the hearing loss and open to trying out new devices. Priya loans them a remote microphone for Mr Spurr to use in restaurants, which was one of the scenarios identified as problematic through Living Well.

Stage: Maintenance

Recommended tools: Living Well (online) and My Hearing Explained

Bob first sought help for his hearing loss a year before this appointment and he has since seen Priya at her clinic a couple of times. In this appointment, Priya uses My Hearing Explained to remind Bob and his wife Jean what the hearing test had revealed about Bob’s hearing and combines this with his responses to the online Living Well tool, which the couple had completed prior to the appointment.

Bob and Jean are open about the communication problems they have experienced as a result of the hearing loss, about Bob’s behavior changes before and after getting hearing aids, and about the strategies Bob is proactively introducing to improve his situation.

They discuss possible solutions going forward, including hearing aid adjustments and seating arrangements and Priya sends the couple home with a copy of My Hearing Explained for them to complete with their impression of how Bob’s hearing is now.

Stage: Pre-contemplation/Contemplation/Action

Recommended tools: Living Well (online) and My Hearing Explained

Nicky is 44 and at her second appointment with Priya. On one level, Nicky is still struggling to accept that she has hearing loss, while on another, she is open about the strategies she has been using during the previous months to mitigate the impact on her life. Some are positive, such as going out for dinner early, when restaurants are quieter, whereas others are less so, such as turning down invitations to go out with friends when she knows she will struggle to hear.

Nicky’s partner Ian is very supportive and talks openly about his past frustration when Nicky frequently asked him to repeat things. He says that the diagnosis has helped him as he now knows there’s a good reason for Nicky’s requests.

Priya uses Living Well – which Nicky and Ian completed prior to the appointment – and My Hearing Explained to open a productive conversation about the problems and possible solutions. Despite her initial reluctance to accept the situation, Nicky and Ian return after the appointment to order hearing aids and book an appointment for the fitting.