Perceptions of Telehealth Services for Hearing Loss in South Africa's Public Healthcare System

Aaqilah Bhamjee; Talita le Roux; De Wet Swanepoel; Marien Alet Graham; Kurt Schlemmer; Faheema Mahomed-Asmail

doi:10.3390/ijerph19137780

Perceptions of Telehealth Services for Hearing Loss in South Africa's Public Healthcare System

Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2022 Jun 24;19(13):7780. doi: 10.3390/ijerph19137780.

Authors

Aaqilah Bhamjee¹, Talita le Roux¹, De Wet Swanepoel^{1

2

3}, Marien Alet Graham⁴, Kurt Schlemmer^{1

5}, Faheema Mahomed-Asmail^{1

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa.
² Ear Science Institute Australia, Subiaco, WA 6008, Australia.
³ Virtual Hearing Laboratory, Collaborative Initiative between University of Colorado and the University of Pretoria, Aurora, CO 10045, USA.
⁴ Department of Science, Mathematics and Technology Education, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa.
⁵ Department of ENT Head and Neck Surgery, University of Kwazulu Natal, Durban 4001, South Africa.

Abstract

Telehealth promises increased access to hearing healthcare services, primarily in areas where hearing healthcare resources are limited, such as within the South African public healthcare system. Telehealth for hearing healthcare is especially important during the COVID-19 pandemic, where physical distancing has been essential. This study aimed to describe audiologists' perceptions regarding telehealth services for hearing loss within South Africa's public healthcare system. This study was divided into two phases. During Phase 1, 97 audiologists completed an electronic survey regarding their perceptions of telehealth for hearing loss within South African public sector hospitals. Synchronous virtual focus-group discussions were conducted during Phase 2. Results indicated that audiologists recognized telehealth services' potential to improve hearing healthcare efficiency within the public sector, and most (84.1%) were willing to use it. However, telehealth's actual uptake was low despite almost doubling during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prominent perceived barriers to telehealth were primarily related to hospital resources, including the unavailability of equipment for the remote hearing/specialized assessments, internet-related barriers, and limited IT infrastructure. An increased understanding of telehealth in South Africa's public healthcare system will assist in identifying and in improving potential barriers to telehealth, including hospital resources and infrastructure.

Keywords: South Africa; audiology; hearing healthcare; hearing loss; hearing resources; public healthcare; telehealth.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

COVID-19* / epidemiology
Deafness*
Delivery of Health Care
Hearing Loss* / epidemiology
Hearing Loss* / therapy
Humans
Pandemics
South Africa / epidemiology
Telemedicine* / methods

Grants and funding

This research was funded with assistance from the Andrew W Mellon Foundation’s grant entitled “Supra-Institutional Initiative on the Advancement of Black South Africans within the Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences”, grant number G-41500687.