In 2023, a large value-based hospital system in Florida conducted a pilot in three of their primary care clinics to determine if the Tympa could reduce ear-related referrals to specialists. Upon completion of the pilot, specialist referrals were reduced by 69%, 10% fewer repeat appointments were needed, patient satisfaction was 99%, and 100% of clinicians surveyed preferred the Tympa to irrigation. In 2024, they scaled their new TympaHealth Ear and Hearing program into 25 additional locations.

The following data was provided by the value-based customer and reflects the scaled specialist referral reduction in the first half of 2025 (January 1 through June 30).

Methods

  • Determine the total number of patients with ear-related diagnosis codes across all Tympa facilities in the first half of 2025
  • Investigate patient outcomes from those who went through the Tympa journey vs those who didn’t
  • Compare specialist referral rates for Tympa journey patients and non-Tympa journey patient

Results

The following data was extracted from the large value-based hospital system’s electronic medical record system (EMR) by a data analyst employed by the group.

  • Patients with ear-related diagnosis codes who were NOT seen with the Tympa were referred to a specialist in 17% of cases on average
  • Patients at the same facilities with the same diagnosis codes who were seen with the Tympa were referred to a specialist in 2% of cases on average

Outcome: 88% reduction in referrals for patients seen with the Tympa

Conclusion

Implementation of a scaled TympaHealth ear and hearing program in a large value-based hospital has shown to consistently reduce the number of specialist referrals required by >80% for patients seen with the Tympa.