Important health information is missed by an estimated 43% of patients who are 60 or older, based on recent research. Important details, regarding health care, might be missed due to hearing loss.
There is a Worldwide Hearing Epidemic
Hearing loss is a big issue. Disabling hearing loss is a problem globally for around a third of individuals who are 65 or older.
If we go further, we find that shockingly only about 30% of those same seniors suffering from hearing loss have, or make use of, solutions that would benefit their hearing. When it comes to medical care, this isn’t good news.
With Health Care – Communication is Key
A major cause of death is medical error and miscommunication is a primary cause of medical error. Up to 37% of severe injuries that were caused by medical errors, according to a Harvard study, wouldn’t have happened if communication had been stronger. Lives could be saved if crucial information could be better communicated with patients.
How Medical Care is Impacted by Hearing Loss
When you are talking to pharmacists, nurses, or doctors there is some information you won’t want to miss so let’s not linger on statistics.
Doctors and nurses advise you regarding specific health objectives. They might explain what balanced levels are for things like blood sugar or blood pressure. They might tell you to avoid certain foods to prevent spikes in these numbers that can do you harm. Dealing with your condition could become a problem if you miss crucial advice.
You might be in a situation where your medical provider notifies you that you require medical care. If you don’t understand completely what the doctor is saying, you could miss important warning signs and put off on getting help.
There may be important details about dangerous side effects of medications which your pharmacist is trying to make you aware of. You could end up in the hospital or worse because you thought you heard everything but you didn’t.
Perhaps you get a warning about some dangerous activity from your physical therapist. You might suffer a serious fall because you missed that advice.
It’s Particularly Challenging to Talk About Medical Information
Communicating medical data is particularly difficult because of a little thing known as context. When you miss some piece of information due to your hearing loss, you make use of context to attempt to fill in what you missed. Compensating for hearing loss is something that your brain is actually rather good at. You might even come to think that you heard something that you really didn’t hear, it’s that good at compensating.
With medical information something as small as a “don’t” or “not” can completely alter the meaning of a sentence. One misunderstood number could totally alter a dosage, a goal, or a danger zone.
The smallest detail makes a big difference when it comes to medical care. When those small details are missed, it can produce serious medical problems.
Having Your Hearing Loss Treated
You could be missing important medical advice if you have hearing loss. Now is the time to take the appropriate steps to save your hearing.