The Vision-Hearing Project: Exploring Dual Sensory Impairment (DSI) Among Older Australians

1. Dr Julie Schneider¹
2. Prof Stephen Leeder¹
3. Ass Prof Jie Jin Wang^2,3
4. Prof Paul Mitchell²
5. Dr Bamini Gopinath²
6. Ms Jane Ellis⁴

¹Menzies Centre for Health Policy, University of Sydney, Australia
²Centre for Vision Research, University of Sydney, Australia.
³Centre for Eye Research Australia, University of Melbourne, Australia.
⁴Vision Australia, Enfield, Australia.

Combined hearing and vision impairment is an increasingly frequent disability due to population aging. The Vision-Hearing project has been developed as a practical extension of findings from the Blue Mountains Eye Study, a representative population-based cohort of Australians aged 49+ years. The Vision-Hearing project pilots a 'hearing screening' service model and gathers data on the effectiveness of this model to inform health policy decisions.

The objectives of the study are to: identify the amount of dual impairment among clients attending vision rehabilitation services; to assess the extent of unmet need for hearing services objectively and subjectively among low vision clients; to determine whether the 'hearing screening model' improves access to hearing services/aids; and to determine whether it provides positive benefits to clients (e.g., changes in quality of life and hearing handicap scores).

Methods: Clients attending low vision clinics at Vision Australia are invited to attend an interview and free hearing screening test with a research audiologist. Clients who fail the screening test are encouraged to attend hearing services for a full assessment and will be followed-up as part of the study.

Results: As the study is only in the early stages of implementation, emerging trends from the first 4 months of data collection will be presented. This includes information on the clients participating in the study, including levels of hearing loss and unmet need for hearing services identified.

Conclusion: Partnership projects developed collaboratively between researchers and service providers can provide useful insights to inform evidence-based service policies.