"Close to My Community": A Qualitative Study of Community Health Worker-Supported Teleaudiology Hearing Aid Services.
Laura Coco, Kimberly Leon, Cecilia Navarro and 3 others
PMID 38812073WHAT IT FOUND
Older Latino adults with hearing loss described cost, transportation, stigma, and provider barriers.
They reported positive experiences with hearing aids and teleaudiology. Community health worker facilitators were described as offering patient-centered support beyond practical help.
Key findings
01Participants reported barriers to hearing care, including cost mentioned by 13, transportation by 11, stigma by 7, and provider-related issues by 6.
02All participants described listening and communication difficulties before hearing aids, and all regarded their hearing aid experience positively; 9 commented on teleaudiology convenience, and all participants regarded teleaudiology positively.
03Participants in the CHW group described patient-centered interactions, such as checking whether they were okay, helping them get comfortable, and communicating well, in addition to practical facilitator support.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study took place in one community in the Southwestern United States, so the findings may not apply to other settings. Only 19 interviews were analyzed, and the paper notes fewer interview participants may have been reached because of COVID-19. Interviews were conducted by phone during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have affected audibility and reduced interview length. Participants did not review their transcripts or the researchers' interpretations, so member checking was not done. All participants received hearing aids and follow-up care at no cost, so positive experiences may not reflect paid hearing aid services. The CHW and non-CHW facilitator groups differed in language, community residence, age, and interpreter use, so differences in participant reports cannot be separated from those characteristics. The supplied text does not report how participants were allocated to CHW or non-CHW groups. Participants' reports may be affected by recall and social desirability bias.
Declared interests
The supplied text does not include an author conflict-of-interest declaration. The article metadata lists research support from NIH extramural funding.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read this as evidence that CHW-supported teleaudiology improves hearing aid outcomes. It is a qualitative study of 19 participants' experiences, with no comparison of efficacy outcomes, and participants received hearing aids and follow-up care at no cost.