A qualitative exploration of the assessment process to cochlear implantation for children with hearing loss

Amanda Hall*, Briony Dillon, Helen Pryce, Marette Ambler, Kate Hanvey

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To explore the process of paediatric cochlear implant assessment, from referral to implantation, from the perspective of parents, cochlear implant professionals, and through observations of clinics.

DESIGN: Qualitative approach, using grounded theory methodology.

STUDY SAMPLE: Twelve families with children under 5 years with permanent hearing loss referred for a cochlear implant or received an implant in the past year, and six professionals who refer or assess children for cochlear implants. Data collection involved interviews and ethnographic observations of assessment clinics.

RESULTS: The core theme derived from interview and observation data related to the work of the cochlear implant assessment for families. The relationship between the work generated by the assessment process and capacity of parents to do the work provides a model to examine access to early implantation, consistent with the Burden of Treatment theory. We identified variation in terms of workload, relating to factors such as a child’s additional needs or number of appointments required, and in terms of capacity, relating to factors such as social circumstances or health literacy. Social, peer and professional support and information helped families manage the workload.

CONCLUSIONS: Findings have implications for delivery of paediatric cochlear implant services.
Original languageEnglish
JournalInternational Journal of Audiology
Early online date7 Oct 2024
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 7 Oct 2024

Bibliographical note

Copyright © 2024 The Author(s). Published by Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group on behalf of British Society of Audiology, International Society of Audiology, and Nordic Audiological Society. This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use,
distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. The terms on which this article has been published allow the posting of the Accepted Manuscript in a repository by the author(s) or with their consent.

Keywords

  • Cochlear implant
  • infants
  • children
  • hearing loss
  • deaf

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'A qualitative exploration of the assessment process to cochlear implantation for children with hearing loss'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this