Abstract
In Thailand, people with hearing impairment under the Universal Coverage scheme (UCS) are entitled to having hearing aid free of charge from accredited hospitals. This cross-sectional survey aims to describe the situation regarding hearing aid usage and economic loss from discontinuing usage of hearing aid in people with hearing impairment under the UCS. Data were collected from 364 persons in five provinces (Phayao, Khon Kaen, Chonburi, Samut Prakan, and Songkhla) through face-to-face structured interviews. Descriptive statistics were used for data analyses. The results showed that 54% of the sample experienced improvement in quality of life and 39% were satisfied with hearing aid use. Out of the 164 persons who were interviewed at hospitals, three stopped wearing hearing aid. For the 200 persons who were interviewed in the community, 29% stopped hearing aid use, to whom 50% used for less than one year. The most common reasons for discontinuing usage were high background noises and faulty devices. The economic loss from discontinuing usage up to third year was estimated to be 19.4 million baht. For subjects who were still using the hearing aid, 71% wore the hearing aid daily for 9 hours on average, whereas 44% occasionally wore approximately 3-4 days a week for four hours per day. For persons who used hearing aid with zinc-air battery, around 1-2 batteries were used per month, costing 65-96 baht a month. 43% stated that the cost of batteries was a burden as they were only able to pay approximately 32 baht per battery. Therefore, the National Health Security Office should: 1) set up a follow-up system for hearing aid users; 2) provide training or guideline to hearing aid users, their relatives, and primary care unit officer regarding the service, procedure of treatment, and basic maintenance of hearing aid; 3) set up mobile service for hearing aid maintenance in community; 4) support zinc-air battery in order to match the ability to pay of users and increase distribution channels to sell hearing aid battery; and 5) raise the awareness to hearing aid users and their relatives regarding the government subsidized cost of hearing aid.
