Importance of the Hearing Test

Annual health surveillance checks are part of the process that we carry out for one of our regular clients.

When we saw one of our client’s employees 12 months ago, we carried out a hearing test. The result came back at Cat 1 unilateral hearing loss. The result of Category 1 is acceptable hearing ability, however, the result was also unilateral hearing loss (UHL).

UHL means there is an issue with the person’s hearing – it is medical related and not work-related. UHL is a type of hearing impairment where there is normal hearing is one ear and impaired hearing in the other ear.

Services provided

At the time, the employee was advised to seek further medical advice and a copy of his hearing test results were passed onto him. Today, I saw the employee again and he confirmed that he had not been to see his GP regarding the hearing test results as he thought that he would be ok and the problem would go away. When his hearing test was carried out again it concluded that the result was Cat 4 unilateral hearing loss. Category 4 is rapid hearing loss and a reduction in the hearing level of 30 dB or more, within 3 years or less. Again, I strongly advised the employee to seek medical advice and treatment.

You can find out more information on our health surveillance service, and also read more about hearing tests over on our blog.

Kate Franklin – Operations Director and OH Technician

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