Purpose This study explored the extent to which hearing loss affected positive social interactions in older adults living in rural and urban communities. Method Pure-tone behavioral hearing assessments were administered to 80 adults 60 years of age or older. In addition, all participants completed 2 questionnaires, the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey (Sherbourne & Stewart, 1991) and the Patient Health Questionnaire–Ninth Edition (Kroenke, Spitzer, & Williams, 2001). Results The preliminary findings suggested that adults with hearing loss living in rural towns had poorer positive social interactions compared with their urban counterparts with hearing loss. Also, adults with hearing loss living in rural towns had more symptoms of depression than adults with normal hearing who lived in these same geographical regions. Conclusions These preliminary findings could indicate that older adults with hearing loss living in rural communities will face more isolation than adults with hearing loss living in urban settings. Increasing our understanding of the extent of social isolation in adults with hearing loss living in rural and urban populations will be necessary.

Background There is an increased interest in the impact that hearing loss has on general well-being, including overall quality of life (QOL), to improve and expand care that is provided to individuals with hearing loss. Purpose To evaluate QOL in adults with and without access to hearing health care (HHC). Research Design A cross-sectional study examined QOL across groups of individuals with and without hearing loss. Study Sample One hundred eight participants from West Central and South Alabama received pure-tone hearing evaluations. Thirty-two adults had hearing within normal limits and 76 had at least a mild hearing loss in one ear. Data Collection and Analysis The Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI), the Charlson Comorbidity Index, and an Accessibility to Health Care questionnaire were administered to all participants. The QOLI outcomes were used as the dependent variable for the analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) statistical procedures. Results For adults with hearing loss who did not have access to HHC, lower QOL scores were reported compared with those with access to HHC, but this finding was not significant. Although ANCOVA results did not suggest QOL differences across geographical regions, effect size calculations indicated that adults with hearing loss who lived in the most rural regions of Alabama had lower reported QOL scores than their counterparts who had hearing within normal limits. Finally, those with higher incomes, who were older, and who had fewer physical disorders reported higher QOL than those with lower incomes, who were younger, and who had more physical ailments. Conclusions Adults with hearing loss who live in regions without access to HHC might be at risk for decreased QOL. A number of models for improving access to HHC will be necessary to decrease this potential risk.

Over-the-counter hearing aids (OTC HAs) have the potential to help adults with perceived mild-to-moderate hearing loss across the US, especially in rural communities, where access to hearing healthcare is extremely limited or non-existent. The purpose of this study was to describe an OTC HA clinical trial being conducted in five rural counties of Alabama and to provide preliminary anecdotal data related to the use and care of these hearing aids by the participants. In brief, for this clinical trial, adults with hearing loss were randomly placed in one of three groups where they received varying levels of support for setting, using, and maintaining their OTC HAs. Listening tests and surveys were administered to assess the extent to which they benefitted from the hearing aids as related to word understanding, communication with others in natural settings, and hearing aid use and care. Currently, anecdotal findings suggested that, although some participants required very little support to successfully use their hearing aids, others had difficulty setting and caring for their devices and could have benefitted from individualized guidance. Future quantitative studies will assess the extent of support needed for successful hearing aid benefit and use. Potentially, collaborations among pharmacy and audiology professionals could lead to increased access to hearing healthcare by supporting the use and purchase of OTC HAs in rural pharmacy settings.

Purpose The purpose of this preliminary study was to explore the associations among hearing loss, physical health, and visual memory in adults living in rural areas, urban clusters, and an urban city in west Central Alabama. Method Two hundred ninety-seven adults (182 women, 115 men) from rural areas, urban clusters, and an urban city of west Central Alabama completed a hearing assessment, a physical health questionnaire, a hearing handicap measure, and a visual memory test. Results A greater number of adults with hearing loss lived in rural areas and urban clusters than in an urban area. In addition, poorer physical health was significantly associated with hearing loss. A greater number of individuals with poor physical health who lived in rural towns and urban clusters had hearing loss compared with the adults with other physical health issues who lived in an urban city. Poorer hearing sensitivity resulted in poorer outcomes on the Emotional and Social subscales of the Hearing Handicap Inventory for Adults. And last, visual memory, a working-memory task, was not associated with hearing loss but was associated with educational level. Conclusions The outcomes suggest that hearing loss is associated with poor physical and emotional health but not with visual-memory skills. A greater number of adults living in rural areas experienced hearing loss compared with adults living in an urban city, and consequently, further research will be necessary to confirm this relationship and to explore the reasons behind it. Also, further exploration of the relationship between cognition and hearing loss in adults living in rural and urban areas will be needed.