Ear disease is a major cause of preventable hearing loss and is very common in rural communities, estimated to affect 1.3 million Australians. Rural community pharmacists are well placed to provide improved ear health care to people who are unable to easily access a general practitioner (GP). The purpose of this study is to apply an ear health intervention to the rural community-pharmacy setting in Queensland, Australia, to improve the management of ear disease. The aims are the following: (1) to evaluate the feasibility, potential effectiveness and acceptability of a community pharmacy-based intervention for ear health, (2) to evaluate the use of otoscopy and tympanometry by pharmacists in managing ear complaints in community pharmacy and (3) to evaluate the extended role of rural pharmacists in managing ear complaints, with the potential to expand nationally to improve minor ailment management in rural communities. This is a longitudinal pre- and post-test study of a community-pharmacy-based intervention with a single cohort of up to 200 patients from two rural community pharmacies. Usual care practices pertaining to the management of ear complaints will be recorded prior to the intervention for 8 weeks. The intervention will then be piloted for 6 weeks, followed by a 12 month impact study. Patients aged > 13 years presenting to the pharmacies with an ear complaint will be invited to participate. Trained pharmacists will conduct an examination including a brief history, hearing screening, otoscopy and tympanometry assessments. Patients will be referred to a general practitioner (GP) if required, according to the study protocol. Patients will complete a satisfaction survey and receive a follow-up phone call at 7 days to explore outcomes including prescribed medications and referrals. Pharmacists and GPs will complete pre- and post- intervention interviews. Patient, pharmacist and GP data will be analysed using descriptive statistics and thematic analysis for the qualitative data. This study will demonstrate the implementation of a screening and referring ear health intervention in rural community pharmacy. Feasibility, potential effectiveness and acceptability of the intervention will be assessed. Australian and New Zealand Clinical Trial Registry Number: ACTRN12620001297910 .

中文翻译：

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LISTEN UP（本地综合筛查和测试耳朵和听觉计划）：基于社区药房的耳朵健康干预的可行性研究方案


耳病是可预防的听力损失的一个主要原因，在农村社区非常常见，估计影响了 130 万澳大利亚人。农村社区药剂师可以为那些无法轻易获得全科医生 (GP) 的人们提供更好的耳部保健服务。本研究的目的是将耳部健康干预措施应用于澳大利亚昆士兰州的农村社区药房环境，以改善耳部疾病的管理。目的如下：(1) 评估基于社区药房的耳部健康干预措施的可行性、潜在有效性和可接受性，(2) 评估药剂师在社区药房处理耳部不适时使用耳镜检查和鼓室测量法的情况，以及(3) 评估农村药剂师在处理耳部疾病方面的延伸作用，并有可能在全国范围内扩大，以改善农村社区的小病管理。这是一项以社区药房为基础的干预措施的纵向前测和后测研究，单个队列由来自两个农村社区药房的多达 200 名患者组成。在干预前 8 周将记录与耳部不适管理相关的常规护理实践。该干预措施将试行 6 周，然后进行为期 12 个月的影响研究。年龄 > 13 岁因耳朵不适而到药房就诊的患者将被邀请参加。训练有素的药剂师将进行检查，包括简要病史、听力筛查、耳镜检查和鼓室导抗测试评估。根据研究方案，如果需要，患者将被转介给全科医生（GP）。 患者将完成满意度调查，并在 7 天后接到后续电话，以探讨结果，包括处方药物和转诊。药剂师和全科医生将完成干预前和干预后的访谈。将使用定性数据的描述性统计和主题分析来分析患者、药剂师和全科医生的数据。本研究将展示在农村社区药房实施筛查和转诊耳部健康干预措施。将评估干预措施的可行性、潜在有效性和可接受性。澳大利亚和新西兰临床试验注册号：ACTRN12620001297910。