Hearing and vision health for people with dementia in residential long term care: Knowledge, attitudes and practice in England, South Korea, India, Greece, Indonesia and Australia

Abstract

Objectives Up to 90% of people with dementia in long term care (LTC) have hearing and/or vision impairment. Hearing/vision difficulties are frequently under‐recognised or incompletely managed. The impacts of hearing/vision impairment include more rapid cognitive decline, behavioural disturbances, reduced quality of life, and greater care burden. This research investigated LTC staff knowledge, attitudes and practice regarding hearing/vision care needs for residents with dementia. Methods A survey of staff in LTC facilities in England, South Korea, India, Greece, Indonesia and Australia. Respondents used a five‐point scale to indicate agreement or YES/NO response to questions regarding sensory‐cognitive care knowledge (what is known); attitudes (what is thought); practice (what is done). Results Respondents reported high awareness of hearing/vision care needs, although awareness of how to identify hearing/vison difficulties or refer for assessment was low. Most felt that residents were not able to use hearing/vision devices effectively due to poor fit, being poorly tolerated or lost or broken devices. A substantial minority of respondents reported low confidence in supporting use of assistive hearing/vision devices, with lack of training the main reason. Most staff did not undertake routine checking of hearing/vision devices, and it was rare for facilities to have designated staff responsible for sensory needs. Variation among countries was not significant after accounting for staff experience and having received dementia training. Conclusions There is a need to improve sensory support for people with dementia in LTC facilities internationally. Practice guidelines and training to enhance sensory‐cognitive knowledge, attitudes and practice in professional care teams is called for.

Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practice of General Practitioners Toward Screening of Age-Related Hearing Loss in Community: A Cross-Sectional Study in Shanghai, China

“…Nevertheless, their understanding of conducting screening tests and interpreting the outcomes is limited. 35 , 36 Meanwhile, a majority of participants express a lack of confidence in their ability to assist residents with the utilization of assistive hearing aids. This lack of confidence primarily stems from a perceived deficiency in training.…”

Effectiveness of Hearing Rehabilitation for Care Home Residents With Dementia: A Systematic Review

“…Despite residents with dementia needing assistance with their hearing devices, staff knowledge in this tended to be low. 7,15,17,21,25,45,46,49 Numerous recommendations to improve care staffs' knowledge of hearing rehabilitation have been published, 2-5 but these are not yet widely implemented, 23,31,32 and there remains no mandatory training on hearing nor regulated standards set for hearing care in the UK or USA.…”

“…Providing hearing rehabilitation in care homes is particularly challenging due to excess background noise levels in communal areas 30 and variations in staff knowledge of hearing loss and hearing device maintenance. [30][31][32][33][34] Existing work 3,4 has systematically reviewed the negative impacts of hearing loss on…”

SENSE-Cog Residential Care: Hearing and vision support for residents with dementia in long-term care in Ireland: Protocol for a pilot cluster randomised controlled trial

“…In Ireland, of the nearly 65,000 people living with dementia, over 30% live in long-term care (LTC) facilities [1,2]. Of these residents with dementia (RwD), an estimated 75-90% have significant hearing impairment, and estimated 40% or more have significant vision impairment, which is nearly three times higher than individuals with dementia who live at home [1,3]. Under-detection and under-management of hearing and vision impairment in RwD is common [4][5][6][7][8][9].…”