Research estimates 43% of patients over 60 might be missing fundamental health information due to hearing loss. Significant details, with regards to health care, might be missed because of hearing loss.
There is a Global Hearing Epidemic
Hearing loss isn’t a small matter. Disabling hearing loss is an issue globally for around a third of individuals who are 65 or older.
If we delve further, we find that shockingly only around 30% of those same seniors who suffer with hearing loss have, or use, treatments that would improve their hearing. When it comes to medical care, this isn’t good news.
The Significance of Communication in Health Care
A major cause of death is medical error and miscommunication is a primary cause of medical error. A report from Harvard revealed that up to 37% of severe injuries that resulted from medical errors could have been prevented with improved communication. An enhanced ability to communicate important information with patients could save lives.
How Hearing Loss Impacts Medical Care
Statistics can seem a little abstract and intangible so let’s consider some significant info you could miss when speaking with pharmacists, nurses, doctors, and other medical professionals.
With regards to reaching health goals, the advice of health care professionals is a key element. They might explain what balanced levels are for things like blood sugar or blood pressure. There are some things that can harm you if they are not managed in a way that your health care professional advises. Controlling your condition could get away from you if you miss essential advice.
These medical providers may explain danger zones that reveal that you require medical care. If you don’t comprehend completely what the physician is saying, you could miss essential warning signs and delay getting help.
There might be important details about dangerous side effects of medications which your pharmacist is attempting to warn you about. You could wind up in the hospital or worse because you thought you heard all the information but you didn’t.
Maybe you get a warning about some hazardous activity from your physical therapist. You could suffer a severe fall because you missed that recommendation.
Why discussing Medical Information is Particularly Challenging
Discussing medical data is especially challenging because of a little thing called context. When you miss something due to your hearing loss, you use context to try to fill in what you missed. Compensating for hearing loss is something that your brain is actually rather good at. So good, as a matter of fact, that it could even make you believe that you heard something you didn’t truly hear.
With medical information something as seemingly insignificant as a “don’t” or “not” can totally alter the meaning of a sentence. One misunderstood number could completely change a dosage, a goal, or a danger zone.
The smallest detail makes a big difference when it comes to medical care. Missing them has been shown to lead to medical errors.
Having Your Hearing Loss Addressed
You could be missing vital medical advice if you have hearing loss. Now is the time to take the appropriate steps to save your hearing.