Important health information is missed by about 43% of patients over the age of 60, according to recent studies. At a time when heeding medical advice is so crucial, patients could be missing vital details about their care.
There is a Global Hearing Epidemic
Hearing loss isn’t a small matter. Debilitating hearing loss is a problem worldwide for around a third of individuals who are 65 or older.
If we go further, we see that shockingly only about 30% of those same senior citizens who suffer with hearing loss have, or make use of, treatments that would improve their hearing. This pattern isn’t good news for medical care as we’ll illustrate next.
With Health Care – Communication is Key
A major cause of death is medical error and miscommunication is a major cause of medical error. As many as 37% of serious injuries that were a result of medical errors, according to a Harvard study, would not have occurred if communication had been stronger. An improved ability to communicate important information with patients could save lives.
How Hearing Loss Effects Medical Care
Statistics can be a little abstract and intangible so let’s look at important info you could miss when talking to doctors, nurses, pharmacists, and other medical professionals.
Doctors and nurses advise you regarding particular health objectives. Maybe they’re explaining healthy insulin or blood pressure levels. There are particular things that can harm you if they are not controlled in a way that your health care professional suggests. You may be missing important pieces of advice that would help you handle your condition.
These medical professionals may explain danger zones that indicate that you require medical care. If you don’t understand completely what the physician is communicating, you may miss significant warning signs and delay getting help.
Your pharmacist may try to warn you about dangerous side effects or drug interactions. You could end up in the hospital or worse because you thought you heard all the information but you didn’t.
Your physical therapist puts you on a strength-building regimen but warns you not to engage in a certain activity. You miss the advice and sustain a serious fall as a result.
Why Communicating Medical Details is Especially Demanding
Putting medical data in the correct context is particularly difficult. When you suffer from hearing loss, you use context to “fill in the blanks” where you missed something. Compensating for hearing loss is something your brain is in fact pretty good at. You might even come to believe that you heard something that you really didn’t hear, it’s that good at compensating.
With medical data something as small as a “don’t” or “not” can entirely change the meaning of a sentence. A danger zone, goal, or dosage, could be
completely changed with one missed number.
The slightest detail matters when it comes to medical care. When those small details are missed, it can result in severe medical problems.
Having Your Hearing Loss Treated
If you have hearing loss, you could be missing essential medical advice. Now is the time to take the proper steps to save your hearing.