Abstract

NTLHAKANA, Liepollo  and  HAMID, Sabeehah. Exploring quality of life post sudden onset hearing loss: A convergent parallel approach. S. Afr. J. Commun. Disord. [online]. 2024, vol.71, n.1, pp.1-7. ISSN 2225-4765.  https://doi.org/10.4102/sajcd.v71i1.990.

BACKGROUND: Sudden onset hearing loss (SOHL) is rare and presents differently to individuals; hence, it is complex to diagnose. The impact on the quality of life (QoL) varies for individuals and their support structure. However, the exploration of research designs is warranted OBJECTIVES: This study explored the lived experiences of adults post-SOHL diagnosis and the impact on the QoL. Facilitators of emotional and social aspects of counselling provided by audiologists post-SOHL diagnosis were established METHOD: This was a convergent parallel research study. Data were collected from the two primary participants and three secondary participants, face-to-face and telephonically. The Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults (HHIA) screening tool and the semi-structured interviews were used for data collection. The data sets were analysed independently, viz. descriptive analysis and thematic analysis, to confirm the impact on the QoL post-SOHL diagnosis RESULTS: The HHIA scores obtained were 84% and 50% for P1 and P2, respectively. Key themes that emerged from the interviews revealed that communication difficulties mostly impacted the QoL, which in turn influenced their mental and social well-being. Aural rehabilitation was perceived as ineffective support, thus the inability to reduce the impact on the QoL post-SOHL diagnosis CONCLUSION: The integrated findings indicated the impact on the QoL post-SOHL diagnosis. Convergent parallel methods should be considered by researchers to understand rare auditory pathologies and their impact on the QoL CONTRIBUTION: Person-centred care (PCC) and family-centred care (FCC) are facilitators of counselling that audiologists can employ as QoL management strategies post-SOHL diagnosis

Keywords : sudden onset hearing loss; quality of life; counselling; convergent parallel; family-centred care; adults.

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