Chapter 14: “I Will Make a Difference”: Using the Professional Doctorate to Influence Audiological Care for People with Learning Disabilities

People with learning disabilities are at high risk of hearing loss. Though the most commonly used prevalence estimate is 40%, the actual figure may be higher (Bent, McShea, & Brennan, 2015). Regardless of the exact prevalence, there are many individuals who would benefit from Audiology input. Despite this, the majority are unknown to services and are living with the consequences of an undetected and unmanaged hearing loss.

Several years ago I designed a model to reduce the barriers to better hearing for people with complex needs. It was an award-winning concept and has been published (McShea, Corkish, & McAnelly, 2014). The model recognizes that involvement of key groups, such as caregivers, is vital. However, caregivers often over-estimate the communication abilities of people they support and under-estimate the consequences of undetected hearing loss (Lavis, Cullen, & Roy, 1997). Training in audiological issues seems an obvious solution; though caregivers often report that interventions are imposed on them, by people who do not understand their role (Department of Health, DH, 2007).