Page 35 - Primary Care Audiology

Current models of care can result in false positive referrals to
already stretched ENT clinics. Improved connectivity between
primary care audiology and ENT will mean that GPs can send
people to primary care audiology for effective triage, helping more
patients to be managed close to home and releasing scarce NHS
ENT resources.

We also believe audiologists of the future will practise more like
their pharmacist and optometrist colleagues of today, working in
primary care and at the top of their licence to meet most adult
needs outside hospital.

To ensure patients get the care they need and deliver an
integrated primary care audiology service for all, we will:
• Collaborate with GPs and hospital ENT and audiology
departments to improve all ear and hearing health pathways
• Focus on reducing pressure on GPs and ENT by calling on
commissioners to support a more joined-up model of ear
and hearing care
• Call for better IT connectivity between primary and
secondary ear and hearing care services to reduce
unnecessary trips to hospitals, benefiting patients, the
NHS and the environment.

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