Audiology Fast Facts
About Audiologists: An audiologist is a highly trained health care professional, specializing in audiologic and vestibular disorders. Audiologists are university‐educated and licensed to specifically prevent, evaluate, diagnose, manage, and treat hearing and balance disorders, and to identify medical‐related conditions that require a referral to a medical doctor. A Doctor of Audiology (Au.D.) degree is required to become a clinical audiologist, and audiologists are licensed in all 50 states.
Audiologists are trained and licensed to manage many areas of audiologic health care including providing the following services:
- Comprehensive audiologic evaluations including tests of hearing sensitivity, speech understanding, middle ear function, inner ear and auditory nerve function
- Diagnostic evaluations to identify balance/dizziness disorders
- Identification and referrals of auditory and vestibular conditions requiring further diagnostic testing
- Auditory processing evaluations
- Design, selection and fitting of hearing instruments and assistive listening devices
- Design, selection, installation and monitoring of classroom amplification systems
- Rehabilitation therapy for hearing disorders which might include strategies to improve aided and unaided hearing, speech‐reading and sign language
- Rehabilitation for auditory processing disorders
- Rehabilitation for vestibular (balance) disorders
- Removal of cerumen and foreign bodies from the ear
- Cerumen (earwax) management
- Evaluation and management of tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
- Patient and family counseling related to diagnosis and treatment
- Development and implementation of hearing conservation programs to prevent hearing loss
- Increasing awareness about and prevention of the ingestion of ototoxic substances
- Research and development of new evaluation techniques and rehabilitation strategies
There are approximately 15,000 practicing audiologists in the United States. Audiologists work in a variety of different practice settings, because of their extensive scope of practice, including private practice clinics, hospitals, military clinics, schools, universities and industrial settings.
About the Academy of Doctors of Audiology:
The Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA) is dedicated to the advancement of practitioner excellence, high ethical standards, professional autonomy and sound business practices in the provision of quality audiologic care. For more information, visit www.audiologist.org.
About the Kentucky Academy of Audiology:
The Kentucky Academy of Audiology (KAA) is a professional organization dedicated to advancing hearing and balance care across Kentucky through advocacy, education, public awareness, and research. For more information, visit www.kyaudio.org.