Discovery and Testimony of Unretained Experts: Creating a Clear and Equitable Standard to Govern Compliance With Subpoenas

Hearing impairment is known to be one of the most frequent sensory impairments. This condition is known to be a hidden disorder which is under recognised and under treated all around the world. The World Health Organisation (WHO) estimates suggest that there are over 275 million people with hearing impairment and 80% of them living in low and middle income countries. Moreover, the estimates suggest that incidence and prevalence of hearing loss and also the number of people with hearing loss accessing services varies considerably across countries. This rises the need for health promotion (or public awareness campaigns) directed to increase awareness and education of hearing loss and hearing healthcare. This paper provides brief discussion on ‘Stories and storytelling’, ‘Cross-culture and cross-cultural communication’ and ‘Health promotion and cultural sensitivity’. The central focus of this paper is to highlight the applications of storytelling in different cultural context in health promotion, particularly to hearing loss public awareness campaigns

Global Engagement: Problem Solving and Information Exchange

This interactive session provides opportunities (1) to share ideas for infusing global perspectives and goals into CAPCSD projects, conferences, and the work of committees and task forces; (2) to discuss ways to collaborate in an ongoing global engagement projects and help include content for 2017 conference; and (3) to create how-to guides for ethical and culturally attuned translational research, and clinical education, and service learning

Patient uptake and experiences of Internet-based cognitive behavioural therapy for tinnitus in the US: Process evaluation of a randomized controlled trial

Introduction: An internet-based cognitive behavioral therapy (ICBT) offers a way to increase access to evidence-based tinnitus care. To increase the accessibility of this intervention, the materials were translated into Spanish to reach Spanish as well as English speakers. A clinical trial indicated favorable outcomes of ICBT for tinnitus for the population of the United States. In view of later dissemination, a way to increase the applicability of this intervention is required. Such understanding is best obtained by considering the perspectives and experiences of participants of an intervention. This study aimed to identify the processes that could facilitate or hinder the clinical implementation of ICBT in the United States. Methods: This study evaluated the processes regarding enrolment, allocation, intervention delivery, the outcomes obtained, and the trial implementation. The study sample consisted of 158 participants who were randomly assigned to the experimental and control group. Results: Although the recruitment was sufficient for English speakers, recruiting the Spanish participants and participants belonging to ethnic minority groups was difficult despite using a wide range of recruitment strategies. The allocation processes were effective in successfully randomizing the groups. The intervention was delivered as planned, but not all the participants chose to engage with the materials provided. Compliance for completing the outcome measures was low. The personal and intervention factors were identified as barriers for the implementation whereas the facilitators included the support received, being empowering, the accessibility of the intervention, and its structure. Conclusion: An understanding regarding the factors contributing to the outcomes obtained, the barriers and facilitators of the results, engagement, and compliance were obtained. These insights will be helpful in preparing for the future dissemination of such interventions

Comments on Tao et al. (2017), “Multiple-Frequency Matching Treatment Strategy for Tinnitus”

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U.S. Media Portrayal of Hearing Loss and Hearing Aids

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The Development and Failure of Social Norms in Second Life

This Note analyzes the development and efficacy of social norms in maximizing the welfare of participants in the virtual community of Second Life. Although some of these norms developed appropriately in response to the objectives and purposes of this virtual world, Second Life is so thoroughly steeped in conditions that have impeded the development of successful social norms in other communities that any system of social norms in Second Life will ultimately fail. Because social norms will likely,fail to successfully maximize resident welfare, regulatory schemes imposed both by the operators of the virtual world and by real-world governing institutions are needed to enhance the functioning of this particular alternative reality inhabited by millions

Music listening in relation to recommended daily noise exposure dose and hearing problems using personal listening devices in adolescents and young adults

Objective: This systematic review aimed to explore the evidence on whether the preferred listening levels (PLLs) and durations of music listening through personal listening devices (PLDs) in adolescents and young adults exceed the current recommended 100% daily noise dose; together with the impact on hearing and possible influential factors of such listening behaviours. Design: A systematic search was conducted using multiple online bibliographic databases. Study sample: The 26 studies were included on the basis of the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Results: The results showed that up to 58.2% of participants exceeded the 100% daily noise dose, particularly in the presence of background noise. Significantly positive correlations were found among background noise levels and mean PLLs, as well as the proportion of participants exceeding the 100% daily noise dose. Moreover, significantly worse hearing thresholds were found in PLD users using audiometry, and significantly poor results in otoacoustic emission (OAE), even in the participants with self-reported ‘normal hearing’. Conclusion: It is crucial to develop appropriate standards and safe recommendations for daily music exposure dose in future studies. Providing an essential guide and effective education to adolescents and young adults will help raise awareness, increase knowledge, and consequently change attitudes and listening habits

Importance of “Process Evaluation” in Audiological Rehabilitation: Examples from Studies on Hearing Impairment

The main focus of this paper is to discuss the importance of “evaluating the process of change” (i.e., process evaluation) in people with disability by studying their lived experiences. Detailed discussion is made about “why and how to investigate the process of change in people with disability?” and some specific examples are provided from studies on patient journey of persons with hearing impairment (PHI) and their communication partners (CPs). In addition, methodological aspects in process evaluation are discussed in relation to various metatheoretical perspectives. The discussion has been supplemented with relevant literature. The healthcare practice and disability research in general are dominated by the use of outcome measures. Even though the values of outcome measures are not questioned, there seems to be a little focus on understanding the process of change over time in relation to health and disability. We suggest that the process evaluation has an additional temporal dimension and has applications in both clinical practice and research in relation to health and disability

Impact evaluation and association with EuroQol 5D health-related utility values in Meniere's disease

The study was aimed at evaluating the validity of impact measures among patients with Meniere's disease (MD) with outcome variables of EuroQol generic health-related quality of life (HRQoL) measures (i.e., EQ-5D) by using Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) and EQ-5D index values. 183 members (out of 200 contacted) of the Finish Meniere Association returned the questionnaires that they had filled out. Various open-ended and structured questionnaires focusing on diagnostic aspects of symptoms and impairment caused by the disease were used. For activity limitation and participation restriction, standardized questionnaires were used. Open-ended questions on impact of the disease were asked, and subsequently classified based on the WHO-ICF classification. The general HRQoL was evaluated with EQ-5D index value and EQ VAS instruments. Correlation and linear regression analyses were used to explore the association between HRQoL and other aspects. Based on the explanatory power of different models the disease specific semeionic model provides the most accurate prediction in EQ-5D index calculations (38 % of the variance explained). In EQ VAS scores, HRQoL is most accurately determined by participation restriction (53 % of the variance explained), but the worst prediction was in ICF-based limitations (8 % of the variance explained). Interestingly, attitude and personal trait explained the reduction of HRQoL somewhat better than ICF-based variables. Activity limitation and participation restrictions are significant components of MD, but are less frequently recognized as significant factors in self-evaluating the effect of MD on the quality of life. The current study results suggest that MD patients seem to have problem identifying factors causing activity limitation and participation restrictions and hence use the semiotic description focusing on complaints.Peer reviewe