Keep Your Patients Moving Forward
Beltone × Ohio Ear Virtual Medical Ear Consultations
When something doesn’t look right during an ear examination, hearing care may have to stop. But getting the patient medically evaluated shouldn’t mean losing momentum or losing the patient.
A Direct Connection Between Hearing Care and Medical Expertise
The Beltone × Ohio Ear Virtual Medical Ear Consultation Pilot creates a direct connection between participating Beltone hearing-care professionals and a fellowship-trained ear specialist, helping patients receive timely medical guidance while keeping their hearing-care journey centered around their Beltone provider.
- Beltone Hearing Care → Virtual Ear Specialist → Medical Clearance → Back to Beltone
The Medical Referral Gap
Beltone hearing-care professionals routinely encounter patients with abnormal or uncertain otoscopic findings that may require medical evaluation before hearing care can move forward.
Traditionally, that means referring the patient outside of the Beltone location. From there, the process can become unpredictable. The patient has to identify an appropriate physician, schedule another appointment, wait to be evaluated, receive medical guidance, and then remember to return to Beltone to continue their hearing care.
Every additional step creates another opportunity for delay. And every time the patient leaves the Beltone care environment, there’s uncertainty about whether they’ll return.
Ohio Ear wants to help close that gap.
Medical Expertise Without Disconnecting the Patient From Beltone
Ohio Ear proposes a virtual consultation service that gives participating Beltone locations direct access to specialized medical ear expertise.
Instead of simply sending a patient away when an abnormal or uncertain finding is identified, participating locations can initiate a virtual medical ear consultation.
Trained Beltone staff capture standardized digital otoscopic images and submit them securely along with a brief clinical history. A fellowship-trained otologist/neurotologist at Ohio Ear reviews the information and provides an appropriate medical disposition.
The goal is straightforward: Help determine what needs to happen next as efficiently as possible.
A Simple Three-Level Medical Disposition
Every submitted consultation receives a clear disposition to help the participating Beltone location understand the appropriate next step.
GREEN: Proceed With Hearing Care
The submitted information does not indicate that additional medical evaluation is needed before the patient’s hearing-care journey continues. The patient can move forward with appropriate hearing services through their Beltone provider.
YELLOW: Medical Treatment or Additional Evaluation Recommended
The consultation identifies something that should receive additional medical attention before hearing care proceeds. The patient receives direction regarding the appropriate next step.
RED: In-Person ENT / Neurotology Evaluation Recommended
The submitted information indicates that the patient should receive an in-person medical evaluation. When appropriate, Ohio Ear can help facilitate specialized evaluation for the patient.
And Then the Patient Goes Back to Beltone
Step 1
Beltone Identifies a Concern
An abnormal or uncertain finding is identified during the patient’s visit.
Step 2
Information Is Captured
Trained Beltone staff capture standardized digital otoscopic images and a brief clinical history.
Step 3
Ohio Ear Reviews the Case
A fellowship-trained ear specialist reviews the submitted information.
Step 4
Beltone Receives a Disposition
The case receives a Green, Yellow, or Red disposition based on the appropriate next step.
Step 5
Medical Needs Are Addressed
When additional treatment or in-person evaluation is recommended, the patient follows the appropriate medical pathway.
Step 6
The Patient Returns to Beltone
Once medically cleared, the patient returns to their originating Beltone location for hearing-aid services. Beltone remains at the center of the hearing-care journey.
Why This Matters for Beltone
Faster Access to Physician Expertise
Give participating hearing-care professionals a direct pathway to specialized medical ear expertise when questions arise.
A Closed-Loop Referral Pathway
Create a defined process for medical evaluation with the intention of returning medically cleared patients to their originating Beltone location.
Fewer Interruptions
Reduce unnecessary friction between identifying a medical concern and determining what needs to happen next.
Keep the Hearing-Care Relationship Intact
Patients who require medical evaluation don’t simply disappear into an outside referral system. The program is intentionally designed to bring appropriate patients back to Beltone.
Differentiate the Beltone Experience
OTC and online hearing-aid providers can sell devices. This model gives participating Beltone locations an opportunity to provide something very different: hearing care connected directly to specialized medical expertise.
Expand Remote Care
Digital otoscopy and asynchronous physician consultation can create new opportunities to incorporate remote medical expertise into the hearing-care environment.
Strengthen Clinical Collaboration
Build a more direct relationship between hearing-care professionals and physicians specializing in medical and surgical conditions of the ear.
Specialized Expertise From Ohio Ear
Ohio Ear is a medical practice dedicated specifically to hearing, balance, and conditions of the ear.
The practice is led by a fellowship-trained ear surgeon with advanced training in medical and surgical conditions involving the ear, hearing system, balance system, and surrounding structures.
The virtual consultation model brings that focused expertise into the Beltone environment without requiring every patient with an uncertain finding to begin a traditional outside referral journey.
When a condition does require in-person evaluation, the program can help identify that need and direct the patient toward appropriate medical care.
Built to Complement Hearing Care, Not Compete With It
The relationship between medical ear care and hearing care should be collaborative. That’s fundamental to this pilot.
Beltone provides the patient’s hearing-aid services. Ohio Ear provides specialized medical expertise.
When a medical issue needs to be addressed, Ohio Ear helps address or appropriately direct that need. When the patient is medically cleared to continue hearing care, they return to their originating Beltone location.
Each organization stays focused on what it does best.
A 90-Day Ohio Pilot
The proposed program would begin with a controlled pilot involving 3–5 Beltone locations in Ohio over 90 days.
The pilot allows both organizations to establish the workflow, understand consultation volume, evaluate the patient and provider experience, and measure whether the model improves the traditional medical referral process.
Rather than making assumptions about how the program will perform, we’ll measure it.
How We’ll Measure Success
The pilot is designed to collect meaningful operational and patient-journey data, including:
- Total number of virtual consultations
- Physician turnaround time
- Percentage of patients cleared remotely
- Percentage requiring in-person medical evaluation
- Time from referral to medical disposition
- Percentage of patients returning to their originating Beltone location
- Time from medical referral to hearing-aid fitting
- Patient satisfaction
- Beltone provider satisfaction
These measurements can help determine whether the model creates a faster, more connected hearing-care journey and whether it should be expanded to additional locations.
Beltone Stays at the Center
The goal of this pilot isn’t to create another referral destination. It’s to create a better connection between hearing care and medical ear care. A connection that helps Beltone hearing-care professionals get answers. A connection that helps patients move forward. And a connection designed to return medically cleared patients to the Beltone provider who started their hearing-care journey.