Audiologists are health care professionals who help the hearing impaired. Their jobs can be broken down into several steps. First, they evaluate and diagnose hearing problems. Second, they prescribe treatment and rehabilitation. Third, they focus on prevention, research, and education. Audiologists deal with patients of every age and background who have varying degrees of hearing impairment.
The first part of an audiologist’s job is the evaluation and diagnosis of hearing problems. To do this, they use special electronic equipment, interview the patient, and conduct various tests. Generally, this step involves finding the degree, type, and location of the patient’s hearing problem. One example of a diagnostic procedure is neurophysiological hearing testing, which involves measuring nerve impulses in the brain to identify the location of the problem.
The second step, treatment and rehabilitation, can take different forms depending on how serious the patient’s problem is. Audiologists prescribe or suggest assistive devices, and teach patients how to use them. Examples of assistive devices include hearing aids, visual alarms, and telephone adapters. They may also help patients with other programs, such as auditory training or lip reading. Counselling is a large part of the treatment process.
Finally, some audiologists are involved in the prevention of hearing loss by suggesting ways to decrease the impact of noise on people’s hearing. They may also be involved in research (in hearing science) or teaching audiology students.
NOC Code: 3141