Charity tunes into hearing loss
A small headset is making a big impact on patient care at Northwick Park Hospital thanks to the thoughtful observation of Physician Associate Sarah Kamal and support from Northwick Park League of Friends.
Sarah noticed some patients struggling to follow conversations on the frailty unit - not due to confusion or delirium as was first assumed - but because they couldn’t hear properly.
Sarah said: “We see more than 200 elderly patients a month and up to 10% either arrive without their hearing aids or have undiagnosed hearing loss. It often results in raised voices and frustration, which can compromise the quality of care.”
In response, the League of Friends funded ten AudiMed Communicator headsets. The easy-to-use lightweight devices are worn by patients helping amplify sound during conversations with clinical staff.
The reusable headsets are ideal for busy, high-turnover environments and are now being used in A&E, Same Day Emergency Care and elderly care wards helping improve communication, reducing stress, and preserving patient dignity.
Feedback has been positive with many rating the devices 5 out of 5 with one patient saying it worked better than his personal hearing aid.
One patient said: “Instead of pretending to understand or asking people to repeat themselves, I could actually hear. It made a real difference.”
Sarah and her colleagues have submitted their findings to the British Geriatrics Society highlighting how overlooked hearing loss can compromise care quality, delay diagnoses, and impact patient experience.
Sarah added: “The headsets are a reminder that simple, scalable interventions can have a profound effect on patient outcomes.
“Tools like this can play a vital role in improving communication, reducing misdiagnosis, and enhancing dignity without adding significant cost or complexity.”