A situational analysis of ear and hearing care in South Korea using WHO ear and Hearing Care Situation Analysis tool

Frontiers in Public Health

Public Health

Seung Ha Oh¹  Junhun Lee²  Chul Young Yoon²  Juhyeong Lee²  Young Joon Seo³  Tae Hoon Kong³ 

[1] Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Republic of Korea;Research Institute of Hearing Enhancement, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Republic of Korea;Department of Biostatistics, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Republic of Korea;Research Institute of Hearing Enhancement, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Republic of Korea;Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju, Republic of Korea;

关键词: WHO;    ear and hearing care;    Korean;    situation;    annual report;   

DOI  :  10.3389/fpubh.2023.1215556

 received in 2023-05-03, accepted in 2023-08-24,  发布年份 2023

来源: Frontiers

【 摘 要 】

ObjectivesThe WHO emphasizes lifelong management of hearing diseases such as hearing loss and advocates for prevention. The Ear and Hearing Care Situation Analysis (EHCSA) tool was designed by the WHO for assessment and quality improvement of state-led management of hearing loss prevention and management programs. The purpose of this study was to use the EHCSA to assess the ear and hearing management program in Korea and to establish goals consistent with best practices for improving policies and services related to ear and hearing care.MethodsThe EHCSA was used as a need assessment of the ear and hearing management services in the country. The EHCSA consists of two sections. Section 1 consists of 41 questions to evaluate health policies and support services. Section 2 consists of 203 questions to evaluate human resources and services of the ear and hearing management sector.ResultsThere are an estimated 800,000 people with hearing loss in Korea. Policies such as hearing aid support are in place, and outreach services such as free hearing tests are also being actively conducted. In all medical institutions, ear and hearing management treatment and medication prescriptions could be received without barriers. Workers in the fields of ear and hearing management, such as audiologists, language therapists, special education teachers, and sign language interpreters, are specialized and have well-established guidelines for training.ConclusionOverall, the domestic ear and hearing management sector has confirmed that policies and services are well-prepared in comparison with advanced countries such as the United States, Iran, and China. The use of the EHCSA was functional in collecting data on the current state of domestic ear and hearing management policies and services in Korea, can be used for continuous quality improvement and expansion of medical services, and can be used as a reporting mechanism to the WHO.

【 授权许可】

Unknown   
Copyright © 2023 Lee, Yoon, Lee, Kong, Oh and Seo.