#  ACHIEVE Study Outcomes: Beyond the Associations with Cognition

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**Presentation Date:** 03 October 2026

**Duration:** 1:18:04

**Return to:** [AuDacity Archive](https://audiologist.org/audacity-archive)

The ACHIEVE study is best known for testing whether treating hearing loss can slow cognitive decline in older adults. But cognition is only one piece of the picture. In this session, Jennifer Deal, PhD, a lead investigator on the ACHIEVE trial from Johns Hopkins University, will present findings from the study's growing body of secondary analyses examining outcomes beyond cognition. These include reductions in falls, effects on physical function and activity, decreases in social isolation and loneliness, improvements in depression symptoms and fatigue, and gains in health-related quality of life and communicative function. Dr. Deal will walk through what the data show, where the evidence is strongest, and where questions remain, offering audiologists a fuller understanding of how hearing intervention may ripple across multiple domains of healthy aging. Attendees will leave with a clearer picture of the whole-person impact of hearing care and practical talking points for communicating that impact to patients, caregivers, and referring providers.

**Attendees will be able to:**

1. Summarize key ACHIEVE trial findings on outcomes beyond cognition, including effects on falls, physical function, social isolation, loneliness, depression, fatigue, and quality of life.
2. Interpret the strength and limitations of the evidence linking hearing intervention to these broader health outcomes, including where findings were robust versus where the intervention showed limited effect.
3. Apply ACHIEVE study findings when counseling patients and caregivers, framing hearing treatment as a contributor to healthy aging beyond its impact on hearing and cognition alone.

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**Speakers:**

- Jennifer Deal, Ph.D.