Tinnitus
Adult

Ears, Nose, Throat (ENT)

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Emergency Referrals

Useful Management Information

Patients with acute barotrauma should be sent to emergency
If cerumen present, use dissolving drops and irrigation or suction if available
Arrange diagnostic audiological assessment/tinnitus assessment
Patient education/tinnitus management advice
Consider private MRI to exclude acoustic neuroma in unilateral tinnitus
Chronic tinnitus should not be referred to ENT unless associated with vertigo, hearing loss, otalgia, otorrhoea and balance disturbance
Chronic tinnitus - as above, and:
- private audiology for masking hearing aid
- consider cognitive behavioural therapy
- private audiology for hearing aid if hearing loss present
- public/private audiology for patient education/tinnitus management advice

Minimum Referral Criteria

Does your patient meet the minimum referral criteria?

Category 1 (appointment within 30 calendar days)	Sudden onset or chronic unilateral tinnitus and any of the following: vertigo hearing loss otalgia otorrhoea Sudden onset or chronic unilateral or bilateral pulsatile tinnitus or disabling tinnitus and any of the following: vertigo hearing loss balance disturbance Follow up of recent barotrauma event (air flight, diving or blast injury) At the recommendation of local audiologist (highlighting the clinical concerns along with previous audiological report/results)
Category 2 (appointment within 90 calendar days)	Unilateral pulsatile tinnitus
Category 3 (appointment within 365 calendar days)	No category 3 criteria NB Referral is not indicated unless tinnitus is disabling or associated with hearing loss, aural fullness and/or discharge or vertigo

Category 1 (appointment within 30 calendar days)

Sudden onset or chronic unilateral tinnitus and any of the following:
- vertigo
- hearing loss
- otalgia
- otorrhoea
Sudden onset or chronic unilateral or bilateral pulsatile tinnitus or disabling tinnitus and any of the following:
- vertigo
- hearing loss
- balance disturbance
Follow up of recent barotrauma event (air flight, diving or blast injury)
At the recommendation of local audiologist (highlighting the clinical concerns along with previous audiological report/results)

Category 2 (appointment within 90 calendar days)

Unilateral pulsatile tinnitus

Category 3 (appointment within 365 calendar days)

No category 3 criteria

NB Referral is not indicated unless tinnitus is disabling or associated with hearing loss, aural fullness and/or discharge or vertigo

Standard Referral Information

Reason for request

To establish a diagnosis
For treatment or intervention
For advice and management
For specialist to take over management
Reassurance for GP/second opinion
For a specified test/investigation the GP can't order, or the patient can't afford or access
Reassurance for the patient/family
For other reason (e.g. rapidly accelerating disease progression)
Clinical judgement indicates a referral for specialist review is necessary

Relevant clinical information about the condition

Presenting symptoms (evolution and duration)
Physical findings
Details of previous treatment (including systemic and topical medications prescribed) including the course and outcome of the treatment
All conservative options that have been pursued unsuccessfully prior to referral
Body mass index (BMI)
Details of any associated medical conditions which may affect the condition or its treatment (e.g. diabetes), noting these must be stable and controlled prior to referral
Any special care requirements where relevant (e.g tracheostomy in place, oxygen required)
Current medications and dosages
Drug allergies
Alcohol, tobacco and other drugs use

Patient's Demographic Details

Full name (including aliases)
Date and country of birth
Residential and postal address including whether patient resides at an aged care facility
Telephone contact number/s – home, mobile and alternative
Medicare number (where eligible)
Name of the parent or caregiver (if appropriate)
Name of delegate and contact details (Department of Corrective Services)
Preferred language and interpreter requirements
Identifies as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander
Any special needs, access requirements and/or disability relevant to the referral

Referring Practitioner Details

Full name
Full address
Contact details – telephone, fax, email
Provider number
Date of referral
Signature
Nominated general practitioner’s details (if known), if the nominated general practitioner is different from the referring practitioner

Other relevant information

Willingness to have surgery (where surgery is a likely intervention)
Choice to be treated as a public or private patient
Compensable status (e.g. DVA, Work Cover, Motor Vehicle Insurance, etc.)

Essential Referral Information

Description of:
- onset, duration frequency and quality
- functional impact of tinnitus
- any associated hearing/balance symptoms
- any intervention and its effect
- past history of middle ear disease/surgery
Diagnostic audiology assessment (Highly desirable where available and not cause significant delay)

If a specific test result is unable to be obtained due to access, financial, religious, cultural or consent reasons a Clinical Override may be requested. This reason must be clearly articulated in the body of the referral.

Additional Referral Information

Private MRI to exclude acoustic neuroma in unilateral tinnitus
Mechanism of injury (barotrauma)

Send Referrals To

Smart Referrals

Preferred Method
About Smart Referrals

Secure Web Transfer

Gold Coast Health Service District

Internal Referrals

ENT (E-Blueslips)

Fax

(07) 5687 4497

Post

Booking and Referral Centre
Gold Coast University Hospital
1 Hospital Boulevard
Southport QLD 4215

Enquiries

1300 559 083

Related HealthPathways

No directly related pathways found

HealthPathways home page

Service Availability

Dr Jim Hallam

Facilities

Gold Coast University Hospital

If you would like to send a named referral, please address it to the specialist listed above, who will allocate a suitably qualified specialist to see the patient. Alternatively, you can view a full list of our specialists.

TinnitusAdult