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Action to improve audiology services
23/10/2007
New waiting time targets for hearing impaired patients across Scotland were officially announced today.
NHS Boards will be required to deliver an 18 week treatment target for audiology care. All Boards will be expected to achieve the target by 2011.
The announcement was made alongside the publication of the first independent Scotland-wide clinical audit of audiology services.
Unveiling the new target today as she visited the Forth Valley Sensory Centre in Camelon, Minister for Public Health Shona Robison said:
"I understand how vital it is for people to be able to hear properly and how this can make a significant impact on their quality of life. This new waiting time target will make a real difference to those patients.
"Today's publication determined the achievements and the struggles of NHS Boards in delivering much-needed audiology services. On the whole, Boards should be commended for their efforts, particularly NHS Forth Valley, described to be at the leading edge of high quality of care and who gained the highest score in Scotland in the independent audit.
"The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring top quality, modern audiology services and by introducing the new waiting target, we plan to work closely with all NHS Boards to ensure this is achieved to the highest standard."
Professor Adrian Davis, who led the audit, said
"This audit is a first for Scotland. Audiology services are not a high profile speciality but they have the potential to vastly improve the quality of life for a very large number of hearing impaired adults and children in Scotland.
"We hope the findings from our audit will assist the Scottish Government's aim to respond to patient demands for equity of high quality services across Scotland."
The Clinical Audit of Audiology Services in Scotland was conducted earlier this year by the Medical Research Council Hearing and Communications Group, based at Manchester University and led by Professor Adrian Davis, OBE.
The overall aim of the audit was to determine the success of the Audiology Services Modernisation Project (2003 - 2007).