LK
New Member
- Joined
- Jun 27, 2005
- Messages
- 40
- Reaction score
- 0
Heya. So, some background:
I'm an audiologist. I spent ten years splitting my time between clinical practice and hearing conservation/ hearing loss prevention before deciding that, since the majority of the hearing losses I saw could have been at least partially prevented, I was going about it completely ass backwards. The audiological model is flawed: if dentistry practiced like we do, dentists would never mention brushing or flossing, but would expect to see patients at age 70 or 60 or even younger, to fit them with dentures. This is a really stupid approach.
Now I do full time hearing loss prevention: I teach, monitor hearing in industrial settings, and just generally try to improve awareness of the need to protect hearing from the many environmental hazards which arise.
A lot of my students assume that, as an audiologist, I have this magical pipeline of knowledge into what it is to be hearing impaired, congenitally or otherwise. I've told them what I know; everyone's experience is different. I have mild/moderate high frequency loss which should have been prevented, and that really galls me, but the tinnitus I've had since age 8-9? Not so much. But other people's experiences? I'm not in a great position to say. I have no magical pipeline.
And then it occurred to me that I kinda do...you guys.
So for the sake of educating an educator, who has some really curious students (and curiosity is contagious), please let me know your candid responses.
We'll see how this goes. Mods, let me know if you'd prefer this as a blog; the blog section looks unused, so I started here.
I'm an audiologist. I spent ten years splitting my time between clinical practice and hearing conservation/ hearing loss prevention before deciding that, since the majority of the hearing losses I saw could have been at least partially prevented, I was going about it completely ass backwards. The audiological model is flawed: if dentistry practiced like we do, dentists would never mention brushing or flossing, but would expect to see patients at age 70 or 60 or even younger, to fit them with dentures. This is a really stupid approach.
Now I do full time hearing loss prevention: I teach, monitor hearing in industrial settings, and just generally try to improve awareness of the need to protect hearing from the many environmental hazards which arise.
A lot of my students assume that, as an audiologist, I have this magical pipeline of knowledge into what it is to be hearing impaired, congenitally or otherwise. I've told them what I know; everyone's experience is different. I have mild/moderate high frequency loss which should have been prevented, and that really galls me, but the tinnitus I've had since age 8-9? Not so much. But other people's experiences? I'm not in a great position to say. I have no magical pipeline.
And then it occurred to me that I kinda do...you guys.
So for the sake of educating an educator, who has some really curious students (and curiosity is contagious), please let me know your candid responses.
We'll see how this goes. Mods, let me know if you'd prefer this as a blog; the blog section looks unused, so I started here.