My fifth observation was a hearing aid check. The hearing aid was clear and functional. I found an interesting article about the history of hearing aids. It is a relatively brief overview, but it is arranged chronologically. The article also has some nice pictures of the older technologies.
A summary of the article is as follows…
The article dated electrical HAs back to the 19th century. The 1950s began the speech processing and speech analyzing technologies we have seen evolve and improve through the years. The 1960s introduced the minicomputer which allowed the computing power to be downsized to a more manageable size. Shortly after, 1975 was the year compression of multiple channels was introduced. The 80s introduced the pioneering technology of digital, by the end of the 80s an all digital HA had become consumer friendly by price and size. The article expressed excitement in wireless technologies such as Bluetooth for use hearing aids. The possibility of using remote microphones to improve listening conditions would be another step in the right direction for hearing aids. The digital clarity allows for unlimited possibilities.
The article is a good read and pretty interesting to see the milestones of HAs.
http://web.ebscohost.com.www.libproxy.wvu.edu/ehost/pdf?vid=13&hid=6&sid=aa2e41c7-e5f2-4bb6-8298-3c2cf5d16e01%40sessionmgr7
Friday, April 18, 2008
Fourth Observation
For this observation I found an article for educational programs about hearing loss and prevention. In our EDP class a quick poll was taken of the class about how many of us had been educated about hearing loss, maybe 2 people raised their hands.
This article discusses a 35 min presentation given to students in a 4th grade class and a 7th grade class. The presentation covered hearing, hearing loss, and hearing loss prevention. Before the presentation, all of the 478 4th grade students and the all of the 550 7th grade students were given a questionnaire to get a baseline of education and awareness. Half of the students in each class attended the 35 minute seminar and then immediately were given a questionnaire to test the knowledge and attitudes of hearing and hearing loss prevention. Three months after the post test, a follow up test was given to assess retention.
The results from the post test revealed the 4th graders gained significant knowledge and attitudes towards prevention. The follow up test revealed the knowledge and attitudes remained from the presentation. The 7th graders also had great results from the post test, but the follow up test showed the 7th graders retained the knowledge, but their attitudes returned to baseline.
It seems the study shows early education may prove to create attitudes early as they may follow through with their actions based on their attitudes. Though the 7th graders didn’t retain their attitudes, their knowledge is still there. This may prove to help curve their attitudes toward protecting their hearing.
Here is a link to the article: http://web.ebscohost.com.www.libproxy.wvu.edu/ehost/pdf?vid=9&hid=6&sid=aa2e41c7-e5f2-4bb6-8298-3c2cf5d16e01%40sessionmgr7
It is not as long as it seems, the appendix is long and shows all the tests and documentsa used.
This article discusses a 35 min presentation given to students in a 4th grade class and a 7th grade class. The presentation covered hearing, hearing loss, and hearing loss prevention. Before the presentation, all of the 478 4th grade students and the all of the 550 7th grade students were given a questionnaire to get a baseline of education and awareness. Half of the students in each class attended the 35 minute seminar and then immediately were given a questionnaire to test the knowledge and attitudes of hearing and hearing loss prevention. Three months after the post test, a follow up test was given to assess retention.
The results from the post test revealed the 4th graders gained significant knowledge and attitudes towards prevention. The follow up test revealed the knowledge and attitudes remained from the presentation. The 7th graders also had great results from the post test, but the follow up test showed the 7th graders retained the knowledge, but their attitudes returned to baseline.
It seems the study shows early education may prove to create attitudes early as they may follow through with their actions based on their attitudes. Though the 7th graders didn’t retain their attitudes, their knowledge is still there. This may prove to help curve their attitudes toward protecting their hearing.
Here is a link to the article: http://web.ebscohost.com.www.libproxy.wvu.edu/ehost/pdf?vid=9&hid=6&sid=aa2e41c7-e5f2-4bb6-8298-3c2cf5d16e01%40sessionmgr7
It is not as long as it seems, the appendix is long and shows all the tests and documentsa used.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
Third Observation
A young woman came into the clinic referred by the disabilities department. Her main complaint was she needs extra time on the test. Also, she seems to miss notes when presented orally. Case history found the client had PE tubes and chronic ear infections, with the latest one being more than 5 years ago as she could remember.
Video otoscopy was performed revealing scarred TMs which are consistent with tubes. Tymps were bilaterally As. Reflexes and decay were okay ipsilaterally and contralaterally. The clinician also performed PT, SRT, and WR. SRTs were tested using the CID-1 list. Descrim was tested with the NU-8. Right ear was 100% and the left 100%. The next test was the SCAN-A. All test were WNL. The following link is to an audiologist’s website. As audiologist, I think it is important to advocate/advertise for our services. We are not hearing aid dealers, we have specialized skills.
http://www.judithpaton.com/
Video otoscopy was performed revealing scarred TMs which are consistent with tubes. Tymps were bilaterally As. Reflexes and decay were okay ipsilaterally and contralaterally. The clinician also performed PT, SRT, and WR. SRTs were tested using the CID-1 list. Descrim was tested with the NU-8. Right ear was 100% and the left 100%. The next test was the SCAN-A. All test were WNL. The following link is to an audiologist’s website. As audiologist, I think it is important to advocate/advertise for our services. We are not hearing aid dealers, we have specialized skills.
http://www.judithpaton.com/
Second Observation
A young man came into the clinic referred for possible CAPD by the disabilities department. The case history found he is a young veteran and experiences some tinnitus. He said the test take a little longer for him to do than others in the class.
First otoscopy was performed. The clinician performed tymps, reflexes, and decay bilaterally, ipsilaterally, and contralaterally, all of which were normal. The clinician also performed PT, SRT, and WR. SRTs were tested using the CID-1 list. Descrim was tested with the NU-8. Right ear was 96% and the left 100%. The next test was the SCAN-A. At this time I had to leave for class.
The following link is a website anybody can visit. I used this link so, as audiologists, we know the type of information available to people outside of our profession. Also, it is a pretty decent description of the SCAN-A test.
http://www.capdtest.com/scan_a.cfm
First otoscopy was performed. The clinician performed tymps, reflexes, and decay bilaterally, ipsilaterally, and contralaterally, all of which were normal. The clinician also performed PT, SRT, and WR. SRTs were tested using the CID-1 list. Descrim was tested with the NU-8. Right ear was 96% and the left 100%. The next test was the SCAN-A. At this time I had to leave for class.
The following link is a website anybody can visit. I used this link so, as audiologists, we know the type of information available to people outside of our profession. Also, it is a pretty decent description of the SCAN-A test.
http://www.capdtest.com/scan_a.cfm
First Observation
A man came in complaining of feedback while using an Oticon Delta hearing aid. Expectedly, he was getting feedback when his aid was near an object. The supervisor explained feedback is normal when near objects. The supervisor and clinician replaced the client’s dome first. Next, they used the Genie fitting software in an aided sound field to try a few tweaks to improve the feedback. The client was happy with the results of the refitting. He has enjoyed great benefit from his hearing aid. He said he has been hearing sounds he hasn’t heard in years. He also ordered another pack of domes.
The link is to Oticon’s newest fitting software. One hearing aid model has wireless connectivity for MP3 players, cell phones, and other wireless capable devices. The new version of the software touts this new capability. It is just the updated software of what’s in the clinic.
http://www.oticonusa.com/Oticon/Professionals/professional_products/Epoq/Genie_2007_1.html
The link is to Oticon’s newest fitting software. One hearing aid model has wireless connectivity for MP3 players, cell phones, and other wireless capable devices. The new version of the software touts this new capability. It is just the updated software of what’s in the clinic.
http://www.oticonusa.com/Oticon/Professionals/professional_products/Epoq/Genie_2007_1.html
Monday, November 19, 2007
Eleventh Observation 11-15-07
For this week, I'm posting links to similar articles from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and ASHA. These articles are a run down of the audiology profession. They describe the training, job outlook, earnings, and so on. These are nice references and also good motovation when you're thinking about all the hard work ahead of you.
ASHA article would seem to be more accurate since they have a greater focus on audiology than the national government would. For instance the ASHA article says faster than average job growth while the Gov't website says average. Also, the ASHA has earnings divided between doctoral level audiologists versus the lesser degrees. Bigger bucks $$, I think we all atleast would rather agree with ASHA's website.
Bureau of Labor Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos085.htm
ASHA: http://www.asha.org/students/professions/overview/audiology.htm
Enjoy the articles!
ASHA article would seem to be more accurate since they have a greater focus on audiology than the national government would. For instance the ASHA article says faster than average job growth while the Gov't website says average. Also, the ASHA has earnings divided between doctoral level audiologists versus the lesser degrees. Bigger bucks $$, I think we all atleast would rather agree with ASHA's website.
Bureau of Labor Statistics: http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos085.htm
ASHA: http://www.asha.org/students/professions/overview/audiology.htm
Enjoy the articles!
Tenth Observation 11-7-07
The following is an article comparing NIHL between elementary music teachers, high school band directors, and vocal/choir directors. The article brought to my attention that some band rooms achieve dB levels above working conditions that require noise protection. Therefore, some musical members are exposed to these conditions without hearing protection. The study took in account the age differences of the subjects as well as exposure from experience. Many of the subjects were susceptible to presbycusis. In summary of the article, they found the levels of noise exposure to be higher than acceptable, they believe the exposure compounds presbycusis rather than causes NIHL. It is a pretty neat article, not a bad read.
Cutietta, R.A., Klich, R.J., Royse, D., & Rainbolt, H. (1994). The incidence of noise-induced hearing loss among music teachers. Journal of Research in Music Education, 42 (4), 318-330. Retrieved November, 19, 2007, from JSTOR.
Cutietta, R.A., Klich, R.J., Royse, D., & Rainbolt, H. (1994). The incidence of noise-induced hearing loss among music teachers. Journal of Research in Music Education, 42 (4), 318-330. Retrieved November, 19, 2007, from JSTOR.
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