Essex woman depressed after tinnitus diagnosis calls for better treatment
New figures reveal tinnitus affects 1 in 7 people in the UK
As Tinnitus Week (3rd – 9th February) continues, the leading charity dedicated to supporting those living with tinnitus is shining a spotlight on the gaps in care across the NHS and private audiology sectors.
With an estimated 8 million people in the UK expected to be affected by the condition, the charity's new report reveals an urgent need for action to tackle this growing public health emergency.
The report reveals "excessive" NHS waiting times, "private sector neglect", and "failure to follow national guidelines."
Following an illness in 2018 and treatment with antibiotics, Adaobi, from Harlow tells Greatest Hits Radio she's "been left with pulsatile tinnitus (tinnitus which follows her heartbeat), which is constant and sometimes difficult to ignore".
She's been suffering for five years now, managing it with music, and is rarely without her headphones.
"It's been such a hard adjustment to make. When it first started it was almost unbearable.
"Hopefully we'll have some treatment soon but at the moment there isn't any.
"It feels like you're hearing your heart or your pulse in your ears and it just never stops. It's like when you have water in your ear, but constantly" says Adaobi.
Patients are facing delays of up to three years for ENT appointments and over a year for hearing aid support.
Additionally, tinnitus care is a low priority in the private audiology sector, with 36% of practitioners admitting it is not a focus for them.
Both NHS and private clinics are failing to comply with NICE guidelines, leading to concerning practices such as the unaccredited delivery of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) by unqualified hearing health professionals.
Tinnitus UK calls for change to address this crisis, urging policymakers and healthcare leaders to take immediate action by:
- Enforcing the full implementation of NICE guidelines across all audiology services.
- Introducing standardised, accredited CPD (continuing professional development) programs.
- Enhancing university curricula to include mandatory tinnitus-specific clinical training.
- Encouraging wider adoption of Tinnitus UK's expert resources by healthcare professionals.
Tinnitus can have a profound impact of various aspects of a person’s health and wellbeing.
Some of the most common effects include anxiety, depression, emotional distress and sleep disturbances.
People may also experience cognitive impacts such a memory issues, physical issues like fatigue and hearing loss, relationships, work and finances may also be affected.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said:
“We are clear that the NHS is broken and community health services like audiology have been neglected.
“A crucial part of our 10 Year Health Plan will be moving towards a neighbourhood health service, enabling people to get diagnosed earlier and treated faster, closer to home, and we are committed to slashing waiting times from 18 months to 18 weeks.”