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Patient interview

How to interview a patient with hearing loss

Other platforms explain it with text and video. In Making Synapses you practice it on the patient.

MD / DOPA
Practice it in VR with Blocky

Sudden hearing loss in one ear is an emergency and needs treatment within days.

Step by step

  1. Introduce yourself and face the patient

    Speak clearly, face them, reduce background noise. [1]

  2. One ear or both

    Which side, and how they noticed. [2]

  3. Sudden or gradual

    Sudden loss over hours to days needs urgent referral. [3]

  4. Associated symptoms

    Ringing, dizziness, ear pain, discharge, fullness. [2]

  5. Causes

    Noise exposure, ear infections, head injury, wax, family history. [3]

  6. Medicines

    Aminoglycosides, loop diuretics, high-dose aspirin, chemotherapy. [3]

  7. Summarize and plan

    Explain the exam and hearing tests. [1]

Common errors

Practice it in Making Synapses

In Making Synapses you do this on the patient, not on paper: every step goes on the checklist with a score, and in Teach mode Blocky tells you what comes next.

Making Synapses cases that train this skill

13 Making Synapses cases train this skill: open the case library

Sources

  1. AAMC Core Entrustable Professional Activities (Core EPAs)
  2. NBOME COMLEX-USA clinical presentations
  3. NCCPA PANCE Content Blueprint

Facts and steps follow NBOME COMLEX-USA clinical presentations; NCCPA PANCE Content Blueprint; AAMC Core Entrustable Professional Activities (Core EPAs). Making Synapses is not affiliated with these organizations. Updated: 2026-10-11.