Hearing aid fitting at SUS (Brazilian Public Health Care System) compared with a compact fitting model

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Health Services Research

Background:

• The quality of audologic care is critical.
• The Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS) hearing aid fitting model involves multidisciplinary care, prompting questions about its efficiency.
• Evaluating alternative care models is essential.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare the effectiveness of the SUS hearing aid fitting model with a more streamlined care approach.
• To assess patient outcomes in terms of speech recognition and satisfaction.

Main Methods:

• A prospective longitudinal study was conducted with 174 participants.
• Participants were randomly assigned to either the SUS Group or a Streamline Group.
• Outcomes were measured using the International Outcome Inventory for Hearing Aids (IOI-HA) and Speech Recognition Index (SRI) at 3 and 9 months post-fitting.

Main Results:

• Both groups demonstrated similar improvements in speech recognition at nine months.
• No statistically significant differences were found between the groups using the IOI-HA at three and nine months.
• Audiologic device (AASI) use led to comparable outcomes in both care models.

Conclusions:

• The SUS and streamlined hearing aid fitting strategies produced similar clinical results in the short and medium term.
• Current hearing aid fitting models may require re-evaluation based on these findings.
• Care strategies do not significantly impact hearing aid fitting outcomes in the evaluated timeframe.