Partnering with Audiology Private Prac4ces Alejandra Ullauri, Au.D., M.P.H. ChicagoHearingCare.com ACIA 2018 Cochlear Implant Prac5ce Management: Maximizing Value for Op5mal Delivery of Care
Disclosure Chicago Hearing Care owner Affilia5on with University of Chicago/Adult Cochlear Implant Program Cochlear Provider Network
Globally 10% of adults who need a CI have one (Sorkin & Buchman, 2016), approximately 5% in the United States (idata, 2010) Where are the adult CI candidates? At audiology & hearing aid private prac4ces
Different studies have suggested using reliable screening tools to iden5fy possible CI candidates (Grisel et al. 2018; Gubbels et al. 2017; Hoppe et al. 2018; Hoppe et al. 2015) Pilot study on the use of data mining to iden5fy cochlear implant candidates (Grisel JJ, Schafer E, Lam A, Griffin T., 2018) 4836 audiograms from one clinic s Noah 4 system 558 (11.5%) poten5al CI candidates iden5fied (screening so_ware) 117 (2.5%) invited to an educa5onal event & followed up
Sycle flags CI candidates
Audiologists in private prac4ce can & should conduct CI assessments: 1. It is within their scope of prac5ce 2. There is a billing code (92626) 3. It is in the best interest of the pa5ent
Audiology Private Prac4ces: Audiology/hearing prac5ces conduc5ng aided speech percep5on tes5ng (2017 PracGce Performance Comparison-US Report) 11% conduct HINT test 49% conduct Quick SIN Hearing aid cycle = Low CI u5liza5on rate (5.6%) Chicago: Approximately 65% of audiology/hearing prac5ces have a sound booth large enough for sound field equipment/tes5ng (Local knowledge from audiology equipment distributor/ unpublished data)
Partnering with Audiology Private Prac4ces
From the CI centers perspec4ve: A Partnership will help: Establish clear referral channels from local audiology prac5ces Streamline care for new pa5ents Streamline care for established CI users Use hospital resources more effec5vely helping new pa5ents become CI users
From the audiology prac4ce perspec4ve: A partnership will help to: Offer a range of hearing solu5ons instead of hearing aids only Differen5ate the prac5ce from hearing aid dispensaries Create a new line of services, products, and revenue: Bimodal op5ons/contralateral hearing aid sales/fihng/programming Mapping and care of established CI users Pre & post Evalua5ons of rehabilita5ve status (speech percep5on tests 92656)
From the pa4ent s perspec4ve: New pa5ents: Receive informa5on about CI from someone they trust Undergo CI assessment at their local audiology prac5ce Established CI users: Learn about new bimodal & bilateral op5ons Access mapping at a non-hospital sehng
Partnerships Partner with local audiology private prac5ces (6 out of 10 are likely to have the clinical sehng to test speech percep5on) Train audiologists on the CI assessment Grow the partnership The Minimum Speech Test Bakery is free
References Gubbels, Samuel P., et al. Can Rou5ne Office-Based Audiometry Predict Cochlear Implant Evalua5on Results? The Laryngoscope, vol. 127, no. 1, 2016, pp. 216 222., doi: 10.1002/lary.26066. Grisel, Jedidiah J., et al. Pilot Study on the Use of Data Mining to Iden5fy Cochlear Implant Candidates. Cochlear Implants Interna5onal, 2018, pp. 1 5., doi: 10.1080/14670100.2018.1425274. Hoppe, Ulrich, et al. Audiometry-Based Screening Procedure for Cochlear Implant Candidacy. Otology & Neurotology, vol. 36, no. 6, 2015, pp. 1001 1005., doi:10.1097/ mao.0000000000000730. Hoppe, Ulrich, et al. Longterm Results of a Screening Procedure for Adult Cochlear Implant Candidates Laryngo-Rhino-Otologie, vol. 96, no. 04, 2017, pp. 234 238., doi: 10.1055/s-0042-117641. Sorkin, Donna L., and Craig A. Buchman. Cochlear Implant Access in Six Developed Countries. Otology & Neurotology, vol. 37, no. 2, 2016, doi:10.1097/mao. 0000000000000946.