The Gynaecology Team from the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow has been recognised for their care of hard of hearing patients.
The team was highly commended in the first ever awards by the Forth Valley Hearing Access Forum. The awards acknowledge individuals and organisations which have ‘broken down barriers’ and made experiences better for deaf people.
Alison Delaney, chair of the Forth Valley Hearing Access Forum, comments: “Poor hearing access is impacting on individuals everywhere. But it doesn’t need to be like this as these Awards show. Our wish for the coming year is that people have more uplifting and positive experiences and far fewer experiences that eat away at well-being, independence and dignity.
“Our members, all of whom have hearing loss, voted for Karen Guerrero and her team at the Queen Elizabeth team for their care and how they supported patients with hearing loss going through treatment.
“The team seemed to understand how best to help and worked together to make them feel comfortable and ensure they understood what was happening. There was even an occasion where they accommodated an assistance dog in the hospital.
“Dr Guerrero and her team are treating patients who are frequently anxious and have previously had poor experiences accessing medical care. If they also have a hearing loss and have to remove hearing aids and glasses it can become very stressful being unable to follow what is happening to them.
“The team makes sure that every member is aware of the patient’s needs and the best way to support their communication. They are also very good at explaining events and treatment options with all their patients however the extra effort they make with hearing loss patients not only reduces the stress significantly but takes away the embarrassment of having to constantly explain and repeat questions.
“This award recognises an excellent example of good practice which we hope to see emulated throughout NHS services.”
The award was made at the Gynaecology Admissions Unit, which is based in the Maternity Unit on the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital site.
Dr Karen Guerrero and her team accepted the award.
She said: “The team and I were honoured and humbled to have been recognised in this way by our patients. As a team we work hard, not just to treat patients, but make sure they are reassured and kept informed at every stage. To have recognition that this is having a positive impact on our patients’ journeys is lovely. We are very grateful to Alison and her team for this award.”