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HOH Medical Abbreviation: What It Means in Healthcare
Updated on: Jul 11, 2025 | 1 min read
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HOH medical abbreviation stands for a common term used when documenting hearing status. Let’s find out what it means and when it’s used.
What Does HOH Stand For in Medical Terms?
HOH stands for Hard of Hearing. It’s a commonly used medical abbreviation, especially in fields like audiology, ENT (ear, nose, and throat), geriatrics, and general practice. This term helps healthcare providers quickly note that a patient has some degree of hearing loss but is not completely deaf.
You might see HOH in:
- Patient history forms
- Electronic medical records
- Audiology reports
- Communication boards in hospitals
- Nursing or care facility documentation
What Does Hard of Hearing Mean?
“Hard of hearing” refers to individuals who have mild to severe hearing loss. These patients may rely on:
- Hearing aids
- Lip-reading
- Visual cues
- Written communication
Unlike people who are deaf, those with HOH typically retain some ability to hear, especially with assistance or under the right conditions.
Why Is the HOH Abbreviation Important?
Marking a patient as HOH in their records can:
- Help staff use effective communication strategies
- Prevent misunderstandings in care
- Improve patient safety (especially in hospital settings)
- Ensure appropriate assistive devices are available
Simple adjustments like speaking clearly, facing the patient while talking, or writing down important instructions can make a big difference.
Research shows that clear communication methods for Deaf and hard-of-hearing patients improve health outcomes and increase access to preventive services.
HOH vs Other Related Abbreviations
Here’s how HOH compares to other commonly used hearing-related abbreviations:
- HOH - Partial hearing loss, may still use spoken language with or without hearing aids.
- DHH - Deaf or Hard of Hearing. A broader term used in both clinical and educational contexts.
- ASL - American Sign Language. May be noted alongside HOH if the patient prefers using it.
- BHOH - Bilateral Hard of Hearing. Refers to hearing loss in both ears.
- CHL - Conductive Hearing Loss. Hearing loss caused by problems with the ear canal, eardrum, or middle ear.
- SNHL - Sensorineural Hearing Loss. A type of permanent hearing loss due to inner ear or nerve damage.
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