Which of the following is the best way for he nurse to communicate with the hearing impaired client?

Your hearing device will help you hear better in some situations, but for better results using a range of communication skills will help you make the most of your hearing and your hearing device. There are other things you can do to give yourself the best chance of hearing and understanding well. These are commonly known as “communication tactics”. The best thing about these tactics is that they are useful for everyone, whether or not they have a hearing loss or use a hearing device.

Tips to help you hear better

Be assertive

Inform people you have a hearing loss and tell them how they can help you. Most people will be happy to oblige if they understand what they need to do.

Explain you don’t need them to shout at you, but to face you when they are talking and speak normally. You might need to remind people of this at times.

Using visual cues

We all “lip-read” to some degree, as we understand how different sounds look on people’s lips when they are talking. We use this naturally to help us figure out what a word might be if we missed it.

Keep a clear view of a person’s face by looking at them when they talk and making sure the room is well-lit.

Using context

When chatting with somebody try not to worry about hearing every single word but focus instead on the theme of the conversation. You can piece in missed words if you understand the general context of the conversation.

Reduce background noise

Try to reduce the noise around you when people are speaking, for example, turn off the television or radio, or sit away from the kitchen or entrance-way in a café.

Asking for clarification

If you miss what somebody has said and you can’t figure it out, try to avoid saying simply “I can’t hear you” or “what did you say?” as this will eventually lead to frustration for yourself and those talking with you.

Instead, ask them to repeat specifically what you missed. For example, “I’m sorry; I missed where you said you were going on Sunday afternoon?”

Asking for repeats

If you keep missing the same word or group of words, ask the speaker to rephrase what they are saying. You might say “I keep missing that last part about your new car, could you please try saying it a different way for me?”

Importance of concentration and keeping calm

Try to keep calm if you can’t hear well in certain situations. When you miss words you might find yourself getting tense, but this will make it even harder for you to catch up with what has been said. There will be times when you don’t hear so well, when you find it almost impossible to figure out the conversation. This is an expected part of having a hearing loss, even if you are wearing a hearing device.

It can help to think about what you can do to help yourself in these situations. For example, can you ask the speaker to write down what they have said?

Remember that if you are tired, or unwell, you will likely find it more difficult to concentrate on following a conversation and you might not hear as well.

Tips for communicating with a person with hearing loss

A person with a hearing loss will struggle to hear at times, even with a hearing device. This is normal and to be expected – a hearing device can help a person, but it cannot cure the underlying hearing loss. Your understanding and consideration of this will help them a great deal.

Try not to get frustrated if somebody can’t hear you – they are asking you to repeat yourself because they value what you have to say.

Speak clearly and don’t shout

Shouting will make your voice distorted and hard to understand. Instead, speak clearly and if necessary, slightly slower than normal. If you do need to raise your voice, project your voice the way you would if you were speaking to a person on the other side of the room. This usually sounds clearer than shouting.

Face the person

When talking to a person who has a hearing loss, make sure you face them. This is helpful because they can watch your face for extra clues about what you are saying, and the volume of your voice will be louder when you are looking at them.

Try not to cover or hold objects in front of your mouth, as this will make it hard for a person with a hearing loss to see and read your lips.

Reduce the distance between you and the person

The ideal listening distance for a hearing impaired person is less than two meters from the speaker. Avoid talking to a person with a hearing loss from a different room.

Reduce background noise

Reduce background noise if you can – turn off the radio or television, close the door leading onto a busy street, pick a quieter restaurant to dine in.

Rephrase the sentence

Rephrase what you are saying if you need to. If a person with a hearing loss asks you to repeat something you said, repeat it once – if they still cannot understand you, think of a different way to say the same thing. This is something most people will naturally do, even for those with normal hearing.

Communication can be a struggle for some deaf people, so we asked one of our hearing dog partners for some top tips on how best to speak with deaf people.

Our tips for communicating with people with a hearing loss

Always face a deaf person. Make eye contact and keep it while you are talking. Try not to look away or cover your mouth as many deaf people rely on lip reading to help them understand you.
Check noise and lighting. Turn off or move away from background noise. Make sure your face is not in shadow and there are no strong lights or sunshine in their eyes.
Keep your distance. Stand a metre or two away from the deaf person. This is important for hearing-aid users, lip-readers and signers.
Speak clearly, slowly and steadily. Don’t mumble, shout or exaggerate – it distorts your lip patterns.
Take turns. If there is more than one person in a conversation take turns to talk.
Repeat and re-phrase if necessary. Trying to say the same thing in a different way might help.
Write it down. Don’t be afraid to write or draw to help understanding.

And arguably one of the most important points to remember is to keep trying – even if a deaf person does not understand what you’re saying the first few times. So many of our partners have told us that when someone says ‘oh, don’t worry. It doesn’t matter’ it feels like they mean ‘you don’t matter.’ Even if it takes four or five times of rephrasing or even writing it down, don’t give up.

You can also learn how to sign the alphabet in British Sign Language with TV presenter Angellica Bell here.

Hearing aids are beneficial in many situations. However, there are some listening events where hearing aids alone cannot provide enough benefit. In those situations, communication partners can help the person with hearing loss be more successful in hearing. Remember, communication involves at least two individuals: a talker who sends the message, and a listener who receives the message. You, as a member of this communication pair, can improve the conversation by following a few simple strategies.

Gain attention

Gain the listener's attention before you begin talking, for example, by saying his or her name. If the person with hearing loss hears better from one ear, move to that side of the person. Also consider touching the listener's hand, arm or shoulder lightly to gain attention. These simple gestures will prepare the individual with hearing loss to listen and not miss the first part of the conversation.

Maintain eye contact

Face the person who has the hearing loss. Make eye contact. Your facial expressions and body language add vital information to the message being conveyed. For example, you can "see" a person's excitement, joy, confusion or frustration by watching the facial expressions or body language.

Keep hands away from face

When talking, try to keep your hands away from your face. You will produce clearer speech and allow the listener to make use of those visual cues by keeping your mouth and face visible.

In addition, most listeners can improve their perception by watching the talker’s face – also known as speechreading. Speechreading helps to improve speech perception. Many sounds can been seen that are hard to hear. For example, the sound /s/ is very difficult to hear but easily speechread. It is important to not over exaggerate your talking, talk with food in your mouth or chew gum when talking to a person with hearing loss. Keep in mind that heavy beards and moustaches can also hide your mouth.

Speak naturally

Speak distinctly, but without exaggeration. You do not need to shout. Shouting actually distorts the words. Try not to mumble, as this is very hard to understand, even for people with normal hearing. Speak at a normal rate, not too fast or too slow. Use pauses rather than slow speech to give the person time to process speech. Give clues when changing subjects or say “new topic."

Rephrase rather than repeat

If the listener has difficulty understanding something you said, repeat it once. If they are still having difficulty find a different way of saying it. Use different words with the same meaning. For example: “I am going to the grocery store." Repeat once and then rephrase. “I am going to the supermarket," If he or she did not understand the words the first time, it's likely he or she will not understand them a second time. So, try to rephrase it. Another option is to ask what the person did not understand and just repeat that phrase or word. For example, "grocery store" is what was not understood, so just repeat those words "grocery store."

Talk away from background noise

Try to reduce background noises when talking. Turn off the radio or television. Move to a quiet space away from the noise source. When going to a restaurant or making dinner reservations, ask for a table away from the kitchen, server stations or large parties.

Good lighting is important

A person with hearing loss can speechread to assist in hearing so lighting on your face is important. When in a restaurant or other social gathering, sit where there is good lighting so that your face can be more easily seen. Poor lighting may cause shadows on the face of the talker. Conversely avoid sitting with strong lighting coming from behind, such as through a window, as that will cause difficulty looking into the bright light.

Use an app to translate from spoken word to written word, or use texting

There are numerous apps that can be downloaded that can allow you to speak into a smart phone and have your words show up on the screen for the person with hearing loss to read. One such app is called Dragon. The use of texting is also an efficient use to supplement communication.