Intensive rehabilitation programmes for deafened men and women: an evaluation study.

In keeping with the general move towards evidence-based medicine that has culminated in the creation of the National Institute for Clinical Excellence and other bodies assessing the effectiveness of resources, the LINK Centre for Deafened People undertook a study to evaluate the immediate and longer-term impact of attending the Centre's rehabilitation programme. It aimed to document the clinical outcomes of this model of rehabilitation and thereby to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention so that deafened people and professionals working in this field are aware in what dimensions benefits are likely to occur. Results from a questionnaire survey of attendees demonstrated highly significant short-term improvements in psychological state, clinical depression, general health, quality of life, communication effectiveness and social functioning immediately following the programme. These benefits were sustained for a period of at least 6 months.