Dr. Grote noted, “These findings do not surprise me. I am a deaf doctor and have firsthand experience with how difficult it is to work without clear masks that facilitate lipreading.”

“I’ve worked in places where senior clinicians have been unkind and unhelpful,” she added. “Fortunately, my colleagues and current workplace are very supportive. I now have a cochlear implant and access to other equipment, including Bluetooth microphones for clinics and ward rounds, and these technologies mitigate some impact of loss of access to lipreading.”

Under the UK’s Equity Act of 2010, employers and training bodies are legally required to provide support to deaf and disabled staff and students.

“We hope employers and national organizations such as NHS England will take note of their legal obligations to ensure that D/deaf health care professionals are provided with appropriate reasonable adjustments, are supported to utilize their skills and talents, and are not discriminated against,” Dr. Grote urged. “Asking D/deaf staff, ‘What support do you need to be the best you can be?’ goes a long way not only to improving staff morale and retention, but also to ensuring that patients receive the best care.”

Dr. Richard D. Ten Hulzen, an ophthalmologist at Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Florida, who has hearing loss, told Reuters Health by email that these communication challenges are a worldwide problem.

“Universal masking and social-distancing policies have detrimental impacts on individuals with hearing loss from every country and socioeconomic class,” said Dr. Ten Hulzen, who was not involved in the survey.”

During the pandemic’s universal masking requirements, individuals with hearing loss are, at best, patiently enduring,” he explained. “At worst, they are miserably suffering. Without adequate support from coworkers and leaders in the workplace and from family and friends at home, the inability to effectively communicate invariably causes the individual to avoid social situations and become more withdrawn from interpersonal interactions.”

As a workaround for his hearing loss, Dr. Ten Hulzen said he relies on scribes or medical assistants, who “act as extra pairs of ears that can help recognize and rectify any potential miscommunication.”