Dificuldade do atendimento médico a pessoas com deficiência auditiva severa.

Objective: To analyze limitations and adaptations of medical care for patients with hearing loss. Material and methods: Descriptive, analytical, observational, cross-sectional and quantitative study. The sample size accounted for 117 doctors. Fifty medical professors from a Higher Education Institution (HEI) were included and accepted to be part of the research. Results: It was observed that most of them were between 36 and 45 years old (38%), and an average of 42.8 years. More than half were female (58%) and graduated from 1991 to 2010 (30 doctors, or 60% of the total). Most are trained in internal medicine (16%) and pediatrics (12%) and 94% of doctors have already treated patients with hearing loss. The number of doctors who attended to a Libras course and graduated between 2011 and 2016 was higher than in previous years. Discussion: Most doctors felt uncomfortable in caring for a patient with this disability, due to lack of language, which is a factor that is supported in the literature. Institutions offer Libras as an optional course or subject. Conclusion: The vast majority of doctors felt uncomfortable for not being able to communicate effectively, had difficulty collecting anamnesis, and did not make a different prescription, which may compromise adherence to treatment. Most believe that learning Libras would be the solution, but only four took a course. It is necessary to review the importance of teaching Libras during medical graduation to improve the care and quality of health care offered to this specific population. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]