Utility of a multidisciplinary approach to pediatric hearing loss

Publication date: Available online 12 May 2017
Source:American Journal of Otolaryngology
Author(s): Karen Hawley, Donald Goldberg, Samantha Anne
IntroductionBecause management of hearing loss (HL) often requires multiple specialists, a multidisciplinary clinic, Pediatric Hearing Management Clinic, (PHMC) was established to coordinate care for children with newly diagnosed HL.MethodsRetrospective review of patients seen in PHMC from February 2009 to April 2010.ResultsClinic information was available for 40/41 of the patients and was included in the study. 37/41 had confirmed HL. HL was categorized into bilateral/symmetric [15], bilateral/asymmetric [12] and unilateral [10]. Sixteen patients subsequently received hearing amplification after PHMC visit. Follow up was successfully established with otolaryngology in 23/32 (72%) patients, audiology in 29/40 (73%) patients, speech pathology in 11/12 (92%) patients, and ophthalmology in 15/30 (50%) patients. Twenty-nine patients completed evaluations of PHMC. The mean score in six total categories was 3.8/4.0 (4.0 as the highest satisfaction).ConclusionA multidisciplinary clinic approach provides a convenient and effective way to coordinate care for children with HL.



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