Cost-effectiveness of Multidisciplinary Management of Tinnitus

The intervention consists of the integration of integral tinnitus management provided by a specialized tinnitus centre in the health care system. The tinnitus centre offers care following a stepped-care approach with two levels. The first level of intervention consists of audiological diagnostics and intervention, a tinnitus educational group session and a individual consult with a clinical psychologist. For patients with mild complaints this basic intervention is expected to suffice. For patients with moderate to severe complaints a second level of intervention exists. This level of intervention consists of combinations of the following therapies: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT), Attention Diversion (AD), exposure techniques, and Relaxation Therapy (RT).

Usual care consists of a standardized version of treatment that is currently applied in peripheral audiological centres throughout the Netherlands. A telephone survey was conducted amongst all audiological centres (n=28) in the Netherlands. The results of this survey determined the content of the usual care treatment protocol in the current study. The treatment consists of audiological diagnostics and intervention and, if necessary, one or more consults with a social worker with a maximum of ten one hour sessions.