This month's cover photo shows a physician interacting with a hearing-impaired patient. Older adults who have hearing loss are particularly vulnerable in the hospital setting: they may have communication difficulties with staff, miss or misunderstand crucial information pertaining to their care, and feel heightened anxiety. They are also at risk for being mislabeled as confused.
Seeking to improve the nursing care of older patients who have hearing impairment, the authors of this month's original research CE conducted a qualitative study to learn more about these patients' hospital experiences. They interviewed eight hearing-impaired patients between ages 70 and 95 years, identified common themes, and then formulated actions nurses could take to better accommodate these patients. To learn more about the study, read "Original Research: Understanding the Hospital Experience of Older Adults with Hearing Impairment" in this issue.-Diane Szulecki, editor