Leveraging the age friendly healthcare system initiative to achieve comprehensive, hearing healthcare across the spectrum of healthcare settings: an interprofessional perspective

Abstract

Objective

Hearing loss is associated with multiple physical, cognitive, and psychosocial co-morbidities. Achievement of safe healthcare in the context of these complex co-morbidities necessitates accurate hearing and coordination across specialties. This paper discusses the potentials for and barriers to an interprofessional approach to integrating hearing screening and treatment across all healthcare settings.

Design

The paper reviews the relationship between hearing loss and other health care concerns to emphasise the need for an inclusive, coordinated, interprofessional approach; discusses interprofessional and patient/family centred coordinated care as essential to achieving quality care; and introduces the Age Friendly Health System initiative as a framework that could be leveraged to move towards comprehensive hearing healthcare.

Results

The literature highlights prior work identifying gaps in quality care and the need for new and innovative approaches to evolve interdisciplinary and interprofessional collaborations to achieve comprehensive healthcare. The literature also provides support for using the Age-Friendly initiative as a point of leverage.

Conclusion

Bringing together thought leaders from the health care provider community, World Health Organisation, age-friendly cities movement, and field of architecture to coordinate the integration of hearing healthcare into Age Friendly Health Systems initiatives has potential to achieve comprehensive hearing healthcare across healthcare settings. (198)

Keywords:

• Hearing healthcare
• age-friendly
• interprofessional
• well-being

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge all the insights about hearing loss and how it impacts experiences in the healthcare system that we have gained from fellow members of the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) and other persons with difficulty hearing.

Declaration of interest

Dr. Wallhagen was a prior Board member of the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA) and is currently on the Board of the Hearing Loss Association of America, California State Association (HLAA-CA). She has no financial disclosures.

Dr. Strawbridge has no financial disclosures.

Dr. Tremblay is currently on the Board of Directors of the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), not paid, and provides consultation services for Lend an Ear, Inc.

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.