I am a hearing impaired podiatrist. During my university years lectures and tutorials were a nightmare. Most of my lecturers had no idea of how to communicate with me, and ensure that I was 'getting it'. No mention was made of how we as podiatrists should communicate with hearing impaired patients. Fortunately, I am able to understand the difficulties that patients have, and much of our chatter is about the woes of hearing loss. I have worn hearing aids for years, 2 years ago I received a cochlear implant. The result has been that I now hear easily in the clinic setting, and now I have to remember to - speak clearly, a little more slowly, keep good eye contact and recognise when someone has understood what I have said, and when they have just tuned out and nodded, because it's all too hard to ask , again what was said. And to not talk to patients when wearing a mask! Lip reading, body language, facial expressions all are part of communication.
All of this takes time, and if you are working under crazy time pressure to get through as many patients a day as you can, well it won't work. You have to give time to people to ensure that you get their story and you are able to achieve the best outcomes for them. Good luck with this very interesting work. Cheers, Maria