Patients’ feedback on the Changi General Hospital tinnitus counselling protocol

Abstract

INTRODUCTION Many tinnitus service providers advocate counselling as an initial and important approach for the management of tinnitus. Our tinnitus counselling clinic (TCC) developed a counselling protocol to deliver information and educate patients on self-help strategies. We aimed to obtain feedback on the components of the initial session and the self-help choices made by patients who returned for follow-up. METHODS All patients who were attending the TCC completed a Tinnitus Handicap Inventory (THI) questionnaire during their first and follow-up sessions. At follow-up, patients were asked to rate how helpful each counselling component was and their choice of self-help strategy for tinnitus. RESULTS 203 patients attended the follow-up session, representing 60.1% of patients initially counselled. THI scores improved, with 45.8% more patients categorised as having no handicap at follow-up compared to the initial 26.1%. Two most helpful counselling components (rated on a 5-point scale) were explanation of self-help strategies (mean score 4.40 ± 0.68) and illustration of healthy and damaged hair cells (mean score 4.30 ± 0.74). The most popular choice for self-help was using a sound strategy plus change in thinking (41.9%, n = 85). A few (32.5%, n = 66) patients were able to change their perception of tinnitus without any sound enrichment, while 17 (8.4%) patients relied solely on sound strategy. Most (97.5%) patients found the initial counselling session helpful. However, 92 (45.3%) patients were still seeking a cure for their tinnitus. CONCLUSION Most patients found the counselling helpful at follow-up. Counselling offered them the opportunity to actively manage their tinnitus.

Sensorineural hearing loss among type 2 diabetic patients and its association with peripheral neuropathy: a cross-sectional study from a lower middle-income country

“…The requirement for sentence repetition might signify difficulties in auditory processing and comprehension, potentially leading to breakdowns in communication 30. Tinnitus, characterised by the perception of ringing or buzzing sounds in the ears, can also significantly impede one’s quality of life and well-being 31. Mousavi et al noted 26.4% (vs 32.3% in our study) prevalence of tinnitus among diabetic patients in their 2021 study 32…”

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“…Literatur mit einer vergleichbaren Nachuntersuchung haben wir nicht gefunden, außer einem Aufsatz aus Singapur. Vielleicht sind dort die Patienten höflicher, wenn Lim , Lu und Koh [20]. berichten: "Most (97.5 %) patients found the initial counselling session helpful".…”