Three years of good hearing

Audiology services at Nye Bevan House

Local community audiologists have collected their accreditation for the third consecutive year.

The audiology service, run by Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust, has maintained a United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) rating of ‘good’, which is measured against the Royal College of Physicians’ Improving Quality in Physiological Services (IQIPS) standards.

In order to achieve this, the audiology teams working across Heywood, Middleton and Rochdale had to submit evidence that they were still working to the high standards they achieved previously.

The review highlighted that there were a number of key strengths, including the improvement of access to memory clinics for people with suspected dementia, and the use of the FLO text messaging system to improve patient motivation and treatment success.

It also praised the joint clinic provided with the local authority in the Rochdale borough to provide patients with environmental aids, to help them hear things like their TV or alarm clock.

Other strengths included good mentoring for students on clinical placement, working with libraries to increase awareness about hearing impairment and excellent investigation and management of complaints.

The assessment team also commented on the strong leadership, good level of team work, the willingness of staff to regularly engage and give feedback to management, and the caring and empathetic service which they provide.

Deborah Rose, Pennine Care Audiology Service Lead, said: “The service was one of the first in the country to achieve this accreditation, so I’m delighted we’ve been able to show how our standards have stayed high throughout.

“We will now look at making the service even better, to make it four years of accreditation and achieve an excellent rating next year.”