Hearing Library

 Hearing Aid Specialists

A Hearing Aid Specialist is a health care provider who is licensed or registered with the state in which he/she practices. Among the requirements to obtain a license in most states, one must first successfully pass a comprehensive written and practical examination to verify his/her competency. The initials BC-HIS following a Hearing Aid Specialists name indicate that he/she is a "Board Certified - Hearing Instrument Specialist" awarded by the National Board for Hearing Instrument Sciences. To receive this certification, the Hearing Aid Specialist must be in the practice of dispensing hearing aids for at least two years and successfully pass a national competency examination. Training for the Hearing Aid Specialist is focused on principles of acoustics, audiometric testing, anatomy of the ear, recognition of disorders of the ear, and a thorough understanding of electro-acoustic principles including transducer functionality, automatic signal processors, compression circuits, digital signal processing and more. The practice of a Hearing Aid Specialist is focused on testing and evaluation of persons with hearing loss primarily for the purpose of selecting, adapting and fitting of Hearing Aids and other amplification systems and the counseling and instruction pertaining thereto. The Hearing Aid Specialist is trained to identify specific "red flag" medical conditions that may be revealed during the evaluation process. If one of these conditions exists, the patient is then referred to a Physician for treatment. Additionally, the Hearing Aid Specialist is trained to assist in modifications, maintenance of hearing aids, and repairs. 

How Do I Know If I Have A Hearing Loss?

Hearing loss occurs to most people as they age. Hearing loss can be due to the aging process, exposure to loud noise, certain medications, infections, head or ear trauma, congenital (birth or prenatal) or hereditary factors, diseases, as well as a number of other causes. In the year 2001, there are some 28 million people in the USA with hearing loss. Hearing loss is the single most common birth "defect" in America. Hearing loss in adults, particularly in seniors, is common.

You may have hearing loss if...
• You hear people speaking but you have to strain to understand their words.
• You frequently ask people to repeat what they said.
• You don't laugh at jokes because you miss too much of the story or the punch line.
• You frequently complain that people mumble.
• You need to ask others about the details of a meeting you just attended.
• You play the TV or radio louder than your friends, spouse and relatives.
• You cannot hear the doorbell or the telephone.
• You find that looking at people when they speak to you makes it easier to understand.

If you have any of these symptoms, you should see an audiologist to get an "audiometric evaluation." An audiometric evaluation (AE) is the term used to describe a diagnostic hearing test, performed by a licensed audiologist. An AE is not just pressing the button when you hear a "beep." Rather, an audiometric evaluation allows the audiologist to determine the type and degree of your hearing loss, and it tells the audiologist how well or how poorly you understand speech. After all, speech is the single most important sound, and the ability to understand speech is extremely important. The AE also includes a thorough case history (interview) as well as visual inspection of the ear canals and eardrum. The results of the AE are useful to the physician should the audiologist conclude that your hearing problem may be treated with medical or surgical alternatives.

What Is An Audiologist?

An audiologist is a person who has a masters or doctoral degree in audiology. Audiology is the science of hearing. In addition, the audiologist must be licensed or registered by their state (in 47 states) to practice audiology.  The same license that is provided to a Hearing Instrument Specialist.

In the field of audiology, the master's degree has been the accepted "clinical" degree for almost 50 years. However, the profession is undergoing a transition to a doctorate level degree as the entry-level requirement to practice audiology. In a few years, there will be very few colleges and universities offering a master's program in audiology. The Au.D. (Doctor of Audiology) is the clinical doctorate degree and is issued exclusively by regionally accredited universities and colleges. There are other doctoral degrees that have been earned and utilized by audiologists to date, such as the Ph.D. (still highly sought today by researchers and academicians), the Sc.D. and the Ed.D.

Audiologists work in a variety of settings including hospitals, schools, clinics, universities, rehabilitation facilities, cochlear implant centers, speech and hearing centers, private audiology practices, hearing aid dispensing offices, hearing aid manufacturing facilities, medical centers, as well as otolaryngology (ENT physician) offices. Although the vast majority of hearing problems do not require medical or surgical intervention, audiologists are clinically and academically trained to determine those that do need medical referral. As a licensed healthcare provider, the audiologist appropriately refers patients to physicians when the history, the physical presentation, or the results of the audiometric evaluation (AE) indicate the possibility of a medical or surgical problem. Many audiologists also dispense (sell and service) hearing aids and related assistive listening devices for the telephone, TV and special listening situations.