Children Avoidably Harmed by Failings in Hearing Services Provision
Posted on in Medical Negligence
The independent review led by Dr Camilla Kingdon into children’s hearing services in England has revealed serious and widespread failings in how children’s hearing loss is identified and managed. For many families, these shortcomings have caused lasting harm.
What the review found
The Kingdon Review found that the system for detecting and treating childhood hearing loss is inconsistent and poorly governed. In some areas, babies with clear signs of deafness were not referred for timely follow-up after the newborn hearing screen. Others received inadequate audiology testing or had long waits for hearing aids or specialist care.
The report highlights a lack of oversight and accountability, with wide variation in standards between regions. Many services were found to be under-resourced, with outdated equipment and a workforce struggling under low visibility and limited professional support.
As a result, some children’s deafness went undetected or untreated during the most critical period for speech and language development.
Why this matters
Early detection of hearing loss is vital. If a child’s hearing difficulties are not recognised promptly, their language, learning and social development can be permanently affected.
Families often experience years of stress and frustration as they fight for assessments and support. These failings can also give rise to potential negligence claims where the standard of care fell short and avoidable harm occurred.
The way forward
The review makes twelve recommendations to rebuild confidence in children’s hearing services. These include national standards for testing and follow-up, stronger clinical governance, better workforce planning and improved communication with families. It also calls for lessons to be learned across other children’s services that risk being overlooked until problems become critical.
How Tozers can help
At Tozers, we specialise in medical negligence, including cases involving delayed or missed diagnosis of hearing loss. We understand the medical and developmental complexities of these cases and work closely with expert clinicians to establish what went wrong and what should have been done differently.
If you believe your child’s hearing loss was not identified or treated when it should have been, and this has affected their development or education, our specialist team can provide clear advice and compassionate support.