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About This Episode

Dr. Georgiou believes that patients should take an active role in their own healthcare, not only when they have an acute or chronic illness or when they’re dying, but at all times. When patients are fully engaged, she says their outcomes are better. She believes that is true with hearing healthcare as well. The ear is a vascular organ, which means it requires a blood supply. Factors that affect your other vascular organs, like your heart, kidneys, and brain can also affect your ears. There is an overlap between these organs. If you have diabetes, for example, a high blood sugar can be toxic to your ears. We know that untreated hearing loss is also linked to cognition issues, a higher risk of falling and numerous other chronic illnesses.

Primary Care Physicians have a Role

Most primary care physicians do not refer their patients to an audiologist for a regular hearing exam. One of the most important reasons they don’t is that they generally don't have the expertise to understand the nuances of hearing loss. They certainly don't have the equipment or the expertise to diagnose it, and they don't have the expertise to treat it. We live in a world of specialty care. When primary care physicians recognize that someone has difficulty hearing, they should refer that person to an audiologist. Primary care physicians do not need feel that they need to diagnose or treat it. But they should be asking, “Are you having difficulty hearing?” And if the answer is yes, and it will be in the majority of people 70 and older, that individual should be immediately given a referral to a hearing specialist.

Informing the Primary Care Physicians

Audiologists should continue to educate PCPs on the interfaces between hearing and overall health. They need to understand that a patient who has hearing impairment, even a mild hearing loss, makes that physician’s life more difficult. Office visit will be longer, they’ll need to repeat what they say, and the patient may not understand the treatment plan. Many studies show that even people with mild hearing loss can't hear if an individual’s voice is directed away from the patient. They may call back for more questions about refills, how to take their medications, etc. Appealing to the selfish side of physicians who want their practices to run more efficiently by telling them what's in it for them.

Listening to the Patient

How important is it for hearing healthcare providers to truly listen to their patients and understand what their needs are? It's important to listen because you will be more successful as a professional. You can tailor your treatment plan to what's most important to that individual. Unless a care plan meets their needs and their lifestyle, and unless they go home owning the device, the experience, and the accountability of using a device, they're not going to use it. Listening is the pathway to good outcomes.

Looking to the Future

Dr. Georgiou would like to make hearing healthcare an integral part of overall health care. That means making sure the traditional medical industry, the primary care physicians and others in that world, recognize how important hearing is to a patient's overall health. Equally important is that audiologists and hearing professionals recognize that they have to be a part of the overall

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