Hearing Loss

You may have noticed that your hearing is not as good as it used to be, or that you find yourself asking people to repeat themselves.

Sometimes hearing loss is accompanied by Tinnitus, or noises in the ears or head, or may be due to earwax. If you think you need your hearing tested, please ask a healthcare practitioner to refer you to the Audiology department for a hearing assessment. 

If you have already been referred to the Audiology department and are awaiting an appointment, please be aware that you may be contacted by phone for further information about the nature of your hearing loss. Some problems, such as Eustachian Tube Dysfunction, can respond to self-treatment with an Otovent.

Everybody feels the benefit of being able to understand better if they can see the person talking to them. It is important that you are able to follow conversations, especially about your health, and if anybody looking after you needs to wear a face mask, then being able to understand what is being said can become much harder, even without any hearing difficulty.  

A transparent face mask that conforms to British standards for use in medical environments is currently under development. When it becomes available, the transparent mask will make it easier to understand speech by being able to see the person’s facial expressions and lip movements.

Further information about face coverings, that are mandatory in England and Scotland when visiting hospitals or travelling on public transport, may be found at Action on
Hearing Loss UK.

Please also visit the Action on Hearing Loss Cymru website for more local information and contact details.