“Blindness cuts us off from things; deafness cuts us off from people … to be cut off from hearing [people] is to be isolated indeed.” ~ Helen Keller

Introduction 

We may not be aware that someone close to us is living with speech, language and hearing difficulties.  We may form unfavorable impressions of these folks thinking they are troublesome, unintelligent or drunk.  May is National Speech, Language and Hearing Month.  This is an opportunity to raise awareness about these disorders and how they can be addressed.  

Speech, language and hearing difficulties affect people from birth to older adults.  They are hidden disorders that can occur at any age in life.  Undiagnosed and untreated, a person living with these disorders can experience decline in mental and cognitive health and adversely impact their relationships.   

15% of American adults over 20 experience hearing loss. Identifying speech, language and hearing loss early is crucial, for children, otherwise it could lead to long term learning difficulties later on.   

Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists play important roles in treating and helping patients with speech, language and hearing difficulties to improve and succeed at work and school.

What do Michigan Medicine Audiologists? 

They are highly trained healthcare professionals in speech, language and hearing difficulties.  The minimum educational requirements for Michigan Medicine Audiologists and Speech Language Pathologists are:

• A Masters Degree in their respective fields.  Since the mid-2000’s a doctoral degree has been required for entry into the field of audiology.  
• Post-graduate fellowship: The fellowship is 9 months for Speech Language Pathologists and a year for Audiologists.  
• Obtain and maintain licensure through Michigan Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA).
• A Certificate of Clinical Competency (CCC) from ASHA (American Speech-Language and Hearing Association).  This is a nationally recognized professional credential that demonstrates an Audiologist and Speech Language Pathologist have met rigorous academic and professional standards and they are expected to uphold ASHA’s high standards and Code of Ethics. 

Audiologists:  Hearing loss is one of the most common chronic conditions our loved ones can face.  It can affect people from birth to beyond retirement.  Michigan Medicine Audiologists evaluate patients for hearing, balance, and other related disorders for adults and children.  This starts at birth.  Each newborn gets a hearing test shortly after they are born.  From there, people may require additional testing at any stage of their life.   

Audiologists test to identify hearing and balance problems along a patient’s auditory pathway.  They evaluate your outer, middle and inner ear.  They are also looking to understand how a patient’s auditory nerve, nervous system and brain processes all this information.  

Preventing hearing loss is a key focus of audiologists. This includes running hearing conservation programs to provide education, accommodations and hearing protection to workers exposed to noise (musicians, industrial workers, landscapers, heavy equipment operators, military etc).  They can work with a team of specialists from the operating room to physical and occupational therapists.  

Meet UMMAP Audiologists 

Crystal Pitts (Audiologist-AuD):   I became an audiologist to help people. I’ve always had a deep respect for my coworkers who are allied health professionals.   We help people achieve their best hearing and balance function has been a very rewarding career path. 

I love working with patients and their families to help them understand their hearing or balance challenges and connect them to the right resources. I also really enjoy working as part of an interdisciplinary team of providers, such as surgeons, physical therapists, speech pathologists, and social workers.

One of the biggest challenges faced by audiologists are diminished or inadequate reimbursement for our diagnostic services. Additionally, we do not receive any reimbursement for the rehabilitative services we provide, which transfers this cost to patients and consumers. 

Greg Mannarelli (Audiologist-AuD):   I fell in love with audiology because the practice of audiology sits at the junction between people skills and technical abilities.  You have to master and blend both abilities to solve our patients’s complex problems. The impact we make can be subtle but often profound.  I particularly enjoy the fact that I get to perform a mix of sole-provider care and team based care.  

Our biggest challenges are that we are being asked to do more with less resources while at the same time receiving signals that these efforts are not enough.  As the healthcare landscape continues to change, we will need a strongly organized community to weather those changes which is why our profession are proud members of UMMAP.

These are hidden disorders 

Communication disorders often do not have any outward facing appearances.  Instead of trying to explain their condition to people, a person living with these disorders would rather be thought of as a “ditz” or “a little off”.   Many people decided it is easier to simply withdraw from social situations, disengaging the person from their family/community.

Balance disorders can be linked to hearing loss and patients with episodic dizziness or imbalance, can feel anxious and stigmatized.  They worry about how others’ perceive them as clumsy or drunk.  Sometimes, patients can be issued handicapped parking permits.  These folks have an invisible disability yet report stares and dirty looks for parking in accessible parking spaces.  

In pediatric audiology, the diagnosis of hearing loss in infants can be an unexpected blow for parents.  One moment you have a normal baby with 10 fingers and 10 toes. The next minute someone tells you something is wrong.  Audiologists extensive counseling skills that help parents come to terms with hearing loss and move forward with rehabilitation.

As a union what can we do?

To prevent noise induced hearing loss, it is important to wear earplugs or earmuffs around loud sounds and to listen to headphones at a reasonable volume.  As a union, we can ensure that our employer provides:

• proper accommodations for their hearing loss
• hearing protection as needed
• hearing healthcare benefits

If you or a family member experience difficulty hearing, dizziness, or notice bothersome ringing in your ears, schedule an appointment for an evaluation with an audiologist. Anyone with concerns about loved ones with communication disorders or simply wants to know more should investigate the following resources: 

• ASHA:  American Speech Language and Hearing Month
• American Audiology Association:  Better Hearing Month
• Noisy Planet:  National Speech-Language and Hearing Month

Come back next month when we highlight the work of UMMAP Speech Language Pathologists.