Recently, a 45 year old male attended our new clinic for a routine hearing test as the nature of his work meant he worked in a noisy environment regularly, you don’t need to be an expert to know this can be very harmful. After we had completed the tests he was found to have one sided hearing loss (unilateral is the technical term for this) which was more than 40 dBa (A-weighted decibels – which is a measure of relative loudness) difference between the left and right ear when compared to his previous test.
One sided hearing loss is not normally a work related or noise induced condition, but more often than not an underlying medical problem. The sort of problems could be measles, malaria, tuberculosis or a host of other different issues. It is not always the condition that is the problem, but sometimes the medication used to treat it. He did tell me at the time that he had ear ache in the past, which can be a cause for concern.
“Quick turnaround, excellent communication and a brilliant team that work really well together to deliver a prompt and professional service. Would highly recommend to anyone and small businesses in particular, as they are competitively priced whilst maintaining a quality professional standard. ”
- AA Labels“We appointed DB Occupational Health to help us with an urgent health assessment and Kate and David could not have been more helpful. Kate was able to offer us a short notice appointment and was extremely efficient in keeping us informed throughout the process. David’s report was available quickly and the information and advice provided were clear and pragmatic enabling us to move forward to support both the individual and the business. DB Occupational Health was professional, friendly and really understood the issues – we would definitely recommend them. ”
- Encon Associates Ltd“I would like to thank Kate very much for her professionalism, methodical, and lovely way she conducted my Occupational Health assessment. Kate made you feel so relaxed, both in the practical and questioning of this medical. I was so impressed all the way throughout the 45 minutes and came away knowing that I had received excellent attention and service. ”
- Employee, Great Central Railway.“Excellent. David and his team have consistently offered Pattonair an outstanding service in all aspects of Occupational Health. I really cannot recommend DB Occ Health enough. Fantastic all round! ”
- Pattonair“Flexible, in-depth and efficient. The service to us by DB Occupational Health was flexible, in-depth and efficient. They provided short notice appointment dates and times which suited us. In addition, all our questions were addressed and the information provided supported both employee and employer in making decisions. ”
- Midland HR“We appointed David Barber (OH) Ltd. in June 2016. He is a trusted and integral team member and his labours have yielded inestimable returns beyond conformity into provoking and softer initiatives which we can now develop to ensure we are a Responsible Business with staff wellbeing central to what we do. ”
- Dacrylate Paints Ltd“David Barber Occupational Health responded to an urgent job. Health surveillance was carried out with reports uploaded in real time, with an easy to read spreadsheet also sent. Thanks for your prompt work. Timescales were good and good service. ”
- McPhee Mixers, Chesterfield“I have used David as my Occupational Health Provider for around 2 years. I had worked with him in a previous company and introduced his service in my existing work place as I was always happy with his advice and support. David is a professional, knowledgeable and realistic Occupational Health Practitioner and I would definitely recommend him ”
- HR manager, Riverside Healthcare“We work regularly with DB Occupational Health and consider them an important part of our Associate team. Here at Loates HR we highly value David’s expertise and the range of occupational health services offered by the DB team to ensure we deliver the best services for our clients. Working in occupational health requires high levels of professionalism and sensitivity to build trust amongst both employers and employees and David, Kate and the DB team deliver on all these fronts. We find the DB team highly responsive to new client requests and flexible on appointment times or locations to suit client needs – a great business to work with. ”
- Loates HR, Derby“We want you to know that we are very pleased with the quality of service your company provides. We sincerely appreciate your responsiveness and the efficient way you conduct business. Our satisfaction with your service would lead us to recommend your company to others. We look forward to doing business with you for years to come ”
- HR Manager Loram UK LimitedWe followed standard HSE protocol and referred him to his GP who gave him a course of antibiotics. During my consultation, we had not seen any evidence of infection so we called him back after 2 weeks for further tests to ensure his hearing was improving. Unfortunately there was no improvement so we referred him back to the GP with advice that he should have an urgent referral to an ENT department (Ear Nose & Throat specialists).
He attended an ENT appointment 2 weeks later and upon further examination was found to have a tumour on the back of his tongue that had tracked up and was stimulating the auditory nerve, hence the ear ache he had mentioned previously and loss of hearing.
This problem would have gone unnoticed without routine HSE standard hearing tests, and could have led to a much worse condition. Luckily he has now started a course of Chemotherapy and will soon progress onto radiotherapy followed by surgery to rectify the problem.
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