Hearing and Value-based Healthcare

Hearing Health: Lower Costs and Better Outcomes

Value-based healthcare means doctor-patient communication is more important than ever

Over the last five years, the growth of healthcare costs in the U.S. has remained steady at 5.5-7 percent. However, this has outpaced the rate of inflation, and researchers say this trend is unsustainable.¹ As a result, the healthcare industry is focused on value-based healthcare as a possible solution.

Value-based healthcare

In population health systems, the doctor-reimbursement incentives are typically not based on office visits but on the actual number of patients treated. This is an example of a value-based healthcare approach, which focuses on ways to drive down costs while still providing the best patient care.

Better health outcomes require better doctor-patient communication

Recently, a number of studies have revealed a wide range of significant comorbidities related to hearing loss, including social isolation, cognitive decline and dementia, and even diabetes.² It’s evident that more effective treatment of hearing loss can lead to better overall health outcomes for patients, which can drive down lifetime costs across the board.

Captioned telephones can help

This white paper from The Hearing Review, Hearing and Value-based Healthcare, explores the deep connections between hearing loss treatment options – such as hearing assistive technologies including captioned phones – and better health outcomes. Additionally, the paper examines statistics and emerging trends in overall population health.