8:00am – 8:15am Class introduction with John A. Merkley, AuD 8:15am - 8:45am OHC Workshop Requirements/P&P with John A. Merkley, AuD 8:45am - 9:15am Teaching Adults with John A. Merkley, AuD
COURSE LOGISTICS – COURSE PREP (BEFORE)
9:15am – 9:45am Pre-Course Logistics with Pam DuPont, AuD 9:45am – 10:00am Organizing your OHC Course with Pam DuPont, AuD
10:00am – 10:15am – BREAK
COURSE CONTENT AND DELIVERY (DURING)
10:15am - 10:30am Hearing Conservation Overall (Domain 1) with John A. Merkley, AuD 10:30am – 10:45am Anatomy, Physiology, and Diseases of the Ear (Domain 2) with Pam DuPont, AuD 10:45am – 11:00am Hearing and the Physics of Sound/Explaining A Hearing Test (Domain 3) with John A. Merkley, AuD 11:00am – 11:15am Federal and State Regulations Related to Occupational Noise-Induced Hearing Loss (Domain 4) with Pam DuPont, AuD 11:15am – 11:30am Noise Measurement and Control (Domain 8) with John A. Merkley, AuD 11:30am – 11:45am Counseling and Training (Domain 10) with Pam DuPont, AuD 11:45am – 12:00pm Recordkeeping and Hearing Conservation Team (Domain 11) with John A. Merkley, AuD
12:00pm -1:00pm - Lunch on your own.
1:00pm – 2:15pm All things audiometry (Domains 5, 6, 7) and the audiometric practicum with Pam DuPont, AuD
2:15pm – 2:30pm - BREAK
2:30pm – 3:15pm Hearing Protection (Domain 9) and the HPD Practicum with John A. Merkley, AuD 3:15pm – 3:30pm Standardized Exam Policy and Procedures with John A. Merkley, AuD
COURSE FOLLOW-UP (AFTER)
3:30pm – 4:00pm Post-Course Wrap-Up with Pam DuPont, AuD
WORKSHOP SUMMARY 4:00pm – 4:30pm Q & A and Workshop Summary, Workshop Evaluation, and Final Exam Instruction as a group.
Wednesday February 6, 2019 7:30am - 4:30pm PST
Appaloosa 3
James (Jim) Jerome is president and senior occupational audiologist for Workplace Integra- Midwest, Inc in Fishers, Indiana. Prior to that, he worked as an occupational audiologist for an IH and safety group for four years, a US Army audiologist for 21 years, and a school audiologist... Read More →
Mary is the owner of Pacific Hearing Conservation, Inc. a consulting firm in Seattle, WA, and has worked exclusively in occupational audiology since 1984. Dr. McDaniel is a Past President of the National Hearing Conservation Association and in 2003 received the NHCA‚Äôs Michael... Read More →
Global Training Manager, Honeywell Industrial Safety
Theresa Y. Schulz, PhD, LtCol, USAF (ret.) Dr Theresa Schulz is Global Training Manager for Honeywell Industrial Safety. With graduate degrees from the University of Texas and the Ohio State University, as well as almost 30 years of experience, Dr Schulz provides consultation... Read More →
Theresa H. Small, Au.D., CPS/A is an occupational audiologist consultant, CAOHC certified professional supervisor and course director and owner of Associates In Audiology, Inc., a professional consulting firm specializing in occupational audiology, and hearing loss prevention. Dr... Read More →
Tim Swisher, MA, CCC-A, FAAA Tim is an occupational audiologist and president of Hearing Safety. He received his B.S. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his M.A. in Audiology at Western Illinois University. He began his audiological career as an Army audiologist, retiring... Read More →
Laurie Wells, Au.D., is a Doctor of Audiology and Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist for 3M Personal Safety Division, where she works with hearing protection and hearing conservation program regulatory issues globally. Her responsibilities include supporting evidenced-based standards... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 8:30am - 9:45am PST
Dallas 5-7
A sound booth has long been the standard equipment needed to conduct audiological examinations, requiring substantial square footage and a trained on-site audiologist. But within the last 10 years, several companies have worked towards developing novel strategies to bring hearing assessment out of the booth, making services more accessible, while increasing efficiencies. Additional requirements within specialty populations and markets, including foreign and domestic militaries as well as U.S. Veterans, add specialized capabilities to the list of acceptable solutions. With developers rushing to meet these needs, it has become increasingly difficult to keep up with the ever-evolving technological landscape. Moreover, recognizing the growing investment in this field, it is essential to develop frameworks that can be used by decision makers to assess the potential value of innovations in the field, from an early stage of their development. This will help accelerate their uptake and adoption into hearing services. This workshop will be comprised of four parts: 1) an overview of military, Veteran and civilian requirements driving development; 2) the current summary of technologies available as matrixed to meet those requirements; 3) presentations from participating boothless audiometry developer representatives; and 4) hands-on demonstrations to allow participants the opportunity to become familiar with each device.
Dr. Andrew Fallon is a Clinical Audiologist for the Department of Defense Hearing Center of Excellence. Dr. Fallon serves as a subject matter expert, both leading and providing support for HCE research and clinical endeavors using his background knowledge in information technology... Read More →
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Dr Jameel Muzaffar is a Royal College of Surgeons Research Fellow at the UK Military Hearing Research Collaboration. His clinical background is in ENT and alongside this he is currently in the final year of a PhD in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge... Read More →
Hearing is a critical sense for individuals in many jobs, work places, and other occupationally-related processes. However, noise can interfere with detecting, identifying, and localizing sounds as well as communication. Instituting noise controls is the primary method to reduce exposure and allow critical sounds to be heard, though administrative controls and personal protective equipment are often necessary. Hearing protection devices (HPDs) with newer technologies have been introduced with capabilities to localize sounds and improve speech intelligibility beyond what older HPDs could provide. Knowing what criteria to use to assess HPD capabilities and when to select newer HPDs is a new challenge for hearing conservation programs. Participants in this course will learn how to identify hearing critical tasks (HCT) in the work place, how HPDs differ in their ability to suppress different types of noise, what assessment methods are being used to determine localization, and how to select hearing protection based upon all the information. Participants will also learn how to instruct hearing protection users on selecting HPDs appropriate for the task.
Major Malisha Martukovich serves as the Air Force Audiology Liaison to the Defense Hearing Center of Excellence at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.As an advocate for hearing health issues within the DOD, she works on outreach activities, prevention branch initiatives and is... Read More →
Kari Buchanan, M.P.H., M.A. is a retired U.S. Navy Industrial Hygiene Officer providing contract support through zCore Business Solutions to the DoD Hearing Center of Excellence. Ms. Buchanan is currently managing efforts on developing a hearing protective device evaluated products... Read More →
In a world where YouTube videos, TED talks, and other engaging content is in the palm of our hand and a finger flick away, we as speakers need to raise our bar. Imagine: you have just invented the world's best foam earplug, or perhaps you have succeeded in identifying the relationship between an otoprotectant and a particular type of noise exposure that may lead to better hearing loss prevention for millions. And now and now, unless you can effectively communicate that information to others, it comes to naught. Indeed, a memo, an email, or written documentation is important, but public speaking brings with it a more powerful tool set. When as listeners we peer into a speaker's eyes, hear their tone of voice, sense vulnerability, intelligence, or most importantly passion, communication is transformed to a new level. Instead, we often sit numbed or confused, by cluttered bullet point slides, tedious indecipherable charts, or a lackluster presenter who is uncomfortable or ill prepared. Come join award winning presenter, Elliott Berger, as he discusses the aws of public speaking engages the audience with kinetic learning and polling software, and shares his insights from over 40 years of observation and presentation of lectures in venues around the world.
Elliott, a retired 3M Division Scientist, is now an acoustical consultant. For over 40 years he studied hearing protection, hearing conservation, and related topics, and authored 17 textbook chapters and over 75 published articles, and is one of the lead editors of the 6th Edition... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 8:30am - 9:45am PST
Appaloosa 3
Provide a comprehensive overview of the draft interstate occupational licensure compact for audiologists and speech pathologists. In addition to an intensive review of the document, attendees will be able to ask questions of members of the compact drafting team and provide feedback on the proposed document.
James (Jim) Jerome is president and senior occupational audiologist for Workplace Integra- Midwest, Inc in Fishers, Indiana. Prior to that, he worked as an occupational audiologist for an IH and safety group for four years, a US Army audiologist for 21 years, and a school audiologist... Read More →
Mary is the owner of Pacific Hearing Conservation, Inc. a consulting firm in Seattle, WA, and has worked exclusively in occupational audiology since 1984. Dr. McDaniel is a Past President of the National Hearing Conservation Association and in 2003 received the NHCA‚Äôs Michael... Read More →
Global Training Manager, Honeywell Industrial Safety
Theresa Y. Schulz, PhD, LtCol, USAF (ret.) Dr Theresa Schulz is Global Training Manager for Honeywell Industrial Safety. With graduate degrees from the University of Texas and the Ohio State University, as well as almost 30 years of experience, Dr Schulz provides consultation... Read More →
Theresa H. Small, Au.D., CPS/A is an occupational audiologist consultant, CAOHC certified professional supervisor and course director and owner of Associates In Audiology, Inc., a professional consulting firm specializing in occupational audiology, and hearing loss prevention. Dr... Read More →
Tim Swisher, MA, CCC-A, FAAA Tim is an occupational audiologist and president of Hearing Safety. He received his B.S. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his M.A. in Audiology at Western Illinois University. He began his audiological career as an Army audiologist, retiring... Read More →
Laurie Wells, Au.D., is a Doctor of Audiology and Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist for 3M Personal Safety Division, where she works with hearing protection and hearing conservation program regulatory issues globally. Her responsibilities include supporting evidenced-based standards... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 10:15am - 11:30am PST
Dallas 5-7
A sound booth has long been the standard equipment needed to conduct audiological examinations, requiring substantial square footage and a trained on-site audiologist. But within the last 10 years, several companies have worked towards developing novel strategies to bring hearing assessment out of the booth, making services more accessible, while increasing efficiencies. Additional requirements within specialty populations and markets, including foreign and domestic militaries as well as U.S. Veterans, add specialized capabilities to the list of acceptable solutions. With developers rushing to meet these needs, it has become increasingly difficult to keep up with the ever-evolving technological landscape. Moreover, recognizing the growing investment in this field, it is essential to develop frameworks that can be used by decision makers to assess the potential value of innovations in the field, from an early stage of their development. This will help accelerate their uptake and adoption into hearing services. This workshop will be comprised of four parts: 1) an overview of military, Veteran and civilian requirements driving development; 2) the current summary of technologies available as matrixed to meet those requirements; 3) presentations from participating boothless audiometry developer representatives; and 4) hands-on demonstrations to allow participants the opportunity to become familiar with each device.
Dr. Andrew Fallon is a Clinical Audiologist for the Department of Defense Hearing Center of Excellence. Dr. Fallon serves as a subject matter expert, both leading and providing support for HCE research and clinical endeavors using his background knowledge in information technology... Read More →
University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust
Dr Jameel Muzaffar is a Royal College of Surgeons Research Fellow at the UK Military Hearing Research Collaboration. His clinical background is in ENT and alongside this he is currently in the final year of a PhD in the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the University of Cambridge... Read More →
Hearing is a critical sense for individuals in many jobs, work places, and other occupationally-related processes. However, noise can interfere with detecting, identifying, and localizing sounds as well as communication. Instituting noise controls is the primary method to reduce exposure and allow critical sounds to be heard, though administrative controls and personal protective equipment are often necessary. Hearing protection devices (HPDs) with newer technologies have been introduced with capabilities to localize sounds and improve speech intelligibility beyond what older HPDs could provide. Knowing what criteria to use to assess HPD capabilities and when to select newer HPDs is a new challenge for hearing conservation programs. Participants in this course will learn how to identify hearing critical tasks (HCT) in the work place, how HPDs differ in their ability to suppress different types of noise, what assessment methods are being used to determine localization, and how to select hearing protection based upon all the information. Participants will also learn how to instruct hearing protection users on selecting HPDs appropriate for the task.
Major Malisha Martukovich serves as the Air Force Audiology Liaison to the Defense Hearing Center of Excellence at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas.As an advocate for hearing health issues within the DOD, she works on outreach activities, prevention branch initiatives and is... Read More →
Kari Buchanan, M.P.H., M.A. is a retired U.S. Navy Industrial Hygiene Officer providing contract support through zCore Business Solutions to the DoD Hearing Center of Excellence. Ms. Buchanan is currently managing efforts on developing a hearing protective device evaluated products... Read More →
In a world where YouTube videos, TED talks, and other engaging content is in the palm of our hand and a finger flick away, we as speakers need to raise our bar. Imagine: you have just invented the world's best foam earplug, or perhaps you have succeeded in identifying the relationship between an otoprotectant and a particular type of noise exposure that may lead to better hearing loss prevention for millions. And now and now, unless you can effectively communicate that information to others, it comes to naught. Indeed, a memo, an email, or written documentation is important, but public speaking brings with it a more powerful tool set. When as listeners we peer into a speaker's eyes, hear their tone of voice, sense vulnerability, intelligence, or most importantly passion, communication is transformed to a new level. Instead, we often sit numbed or confused, by cluttered bullet point slides, tedious indecipherable charts, or a lackluster presenter who is uncomfortable or ill prepared. Come join award winning presenter, Elliott Berger, as he discusses the aws of public speaking engages the audience with kinetic learning and polling software, and shares his insights from over 40 years of observation and presentation of lectures in venues around the world.
Elliott, a retired 3M Division Scientist, is now an acoustical consultant. For over 40 years he studied hearing protection, hearing conservation, and related topics, and authored 17 textbook chapters and over 75 published articles, and is one of the lead editors of the 6th Edition... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 10:15am - 11:30am PST
Appaloosa 3
Provide a comprehensive overview of the draft interstate occupational licensure compact for audiologists and speech pathologists. In addition to an intensive review of the document, attendees will be able to ask questions of members of the compact drafting team and provide feedback on the proposed document.
Hearing protection device selection criteria is generally relegated to TWA and the attenuation required to reduce the exposure to beneath the mandated level. The noise exposure is typically generalized to a continuous exposure as opposed to a dynamic exposure constructed of intermittent and fluctuating noise. Audibility and communication are often an afterthought and workers are left to navigate the auditory hurdles through the workday, sometimes choosing to risk hearing damage to in an attempt to hear and communicate. Modern electronic hearing protectors may offer several advantages to workers who have communication and situational awareness requirements not met by passive protectors. This workshop will combine classroom lecture with hands on experience of utilizing a variety of electronic protectors in dynamic acoustical environments.
Dr. Fallon currently works for 3M Corporation as a Hearing Specialist in Technical Service. Having spent 25 years in the military as an infantryman, artilleryman and audiologists, Eric has managed hearing conservation programs as large as 48,000 personnel. He has multiple deployments... Read More →
The HearTomorrow‚ Audio of Hearing Workshop‚ will explore hearing physiology, disorders and conservation in the context of audio systems theory. Attendees will gain not only a new perspective on the hearing mechanism, but also an understanding of audio systems. The ear IS and audio system and we use modern audio technology in the development of hearing assist and conservation products. The language and mindset of each informs the other. The workshop will cover the following topics pertinent to these areas: microphones & loudspeakers, analog and digital signals, conversion and circuits, and signal processing in the spectral and dynamic domains. Wherever possible, audio principles will be explained using the language and theories of hearing physiology, psychoacoustics and cognition.
Benj has been a professor at Columbia College since 1993, after 20 years in the audio and music industries, including 14 years teaching audio at Northwestern University. Through the 70s, he was partner and sound engineer with the Chicago area concert club, Amazingrace. During the... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 1:00pm - 2:15pm PST
Appaloosa 3
For over 30 years, hearing conservation professionals have known that the Noise Reduction Rating is not necessarily representative of the protection afforded to the average user of hearing protection.
This workshop will present an overview of the technologies available to the hearing conservation professional. During the first part of the session, attendees will learn about different methods to implement fit-testing, benefits of conducting fit testing the different methods used by various commercially available fit-testing systems. Information related to the recently approved ANSI/ASA standard for hearing protector fit-test systems will be shared. During the second part of the session, attendees will experience hands-on demonstrations of the various products.
Captain, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
William J. Murphy is a Captain in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and is coordinator for the Hearing Loss Prevention cross sector for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.He is an active member of the National Hearing Conservation Association... Read More →
James (Jim) Jerome is president and senior occupational audiologist for Workplace Integra- Midwest, Inc in Fishers, Indiana. Prior to that, he worked as an occupational audiologist for an IH and safety group for four years, a US Army audiologist for 21 years, and a school audiologist... Read More →
Mary is the owner of Pacific Hearing Conservation, Inc. a consulting firm in Seattle, WA, and has worked exclusively in occupational audiology since 1984. Dr. McDaniel is a Past President of the National Hearing Conservation Association and in 2003 received the NHCA‚Äôs Michael... Read More →
Global Training Manager, Honeywell Industrial Safety
Theresa Y. Schulz, PhD, LtCol, USAF (ret.) Dr Theresa Schulz is Global Training Manager for Honeywell Industrial Safety. With graduate degrees from the University of Texas and the Ohio State University, as well as almost 30 years of experience, Dr Schulz provides consultation... Read More →
Theresa H. Small, Au.D., CPS/A is an occupational audiologist consultant, CAOHC certified professional supervisor and course director and owner of Associates In Audiology, Inc., a professional consulting firm specializing in occupational audiology, and hearing loss prevention. Dr... Read More →
Tim Swisher, MA, CCC-A, FAAA Tim is an occupational audiologist and president of Hearing Safety. He received his B.S. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his M.A. in Audiology at Western Illinois University. He began his audiological career as an Army audiologist, retiring... Read More →
Laurie Wells, Au.D., is a Doctor of Audiology and Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist for 3M Personal Safety Division, where she works with hearing protection and hearing conservation program regulatory issues globally. Her responsibilities include supporting evidenced-based standards... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 1:00pm - 2:15pm PST
Dallas 5-7
Hearing protection device selection criteria is generally relegated to TWA and the attenuation required to reduce the exposure to beneath the mandated level. The noise exposure is typically generalized to a continuous exposure as opposed to a dynamic exposure constructed of intermittent and fluctuating noise. Audibility and communication are often an afterthought and workers are left to navigate the auditory hurdles through the workday, sometimes choosing to risk hearing damage to in an attempt to hear and communicate. Modern electronic hearing protectors may offer several advantages to workers who have communication and situational awareness requirements not met by passive protectors. This workshop will combine classroom lecture with hands on experience of utilizing a variety of electronic protectors in dynamic acoustical environments.
Dr. Fallon currently works for 3M Corporation as a Hearing Specialist in Technical Service. Having spent 25 years in the military as an infantryman, artilleryman and audiologists, Eric has managed hearing conservation programs as large as 48,000 personnel. He has multiple deployments... Read More →
The HearTomorrow‚ Audio of Hearing Workshop‚ will explore hearing physiology, disorders and conservation in the context of audio systems theory. Attendees will gain not only a new perspective on the hearing mechanism, but also an understanding of audio systems. The ear IS and audio system and we use modern audio technology in the development of hearing assist and conservation products. The language and mindset of each informs the other. The workshop will cover the following topics pertinent to these areas: microphones & loudspeakers, analog and digital signals, conversion and circuits, and signal processing in the spectral and dynamic domains. Wherever possible, audio principles will be explained using the language and theories of hearing physiology, psychoacoustics and cognition.
Benj has been a professor at Columbia College since 1993, after 20 years in the audio and music industries, including 14 years teaching audio at Northwestern University. Through the 70s, he was partner and sound engineer with the Chicago area concert club, Amazingrace. During the... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 2:45pm - 4:00pm PST
Appaloosa 3
For over 30 years, hearing conservation professionals have known that the Noise Reduction Rating is not necessarily representative of the protection afforded to the average user of hearing protection.
This workshop will present an overview of the technologies available to the hearing conservation professional. During the first part of the session, attendees will learn about different methods to implement fit-testing, benefits of conducting fit testing the different methods used by various commercially available fit-testing systems. Information related to the recently approved ANSI/ASA standard for hearing protector fit-test systems will be shared. During the second part of the session, attendees will experience hands-on demonstrations of the various products.
Captain, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
William J. Murphy is a Captain in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and is coordinator for the Hearing Loss Prevention cross sector for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.He is an active member of the National Hearing Conservation Association... Read More →
James (Jim) Jerome is president and senior occupational audiologist for Workplace Integra- Midwest, Inc in Fishers, Indiana. Prior to that, he worked as an occupational audiologist for an IH and safety group for four years, a US Army audiologist for 21 years, and a school audiologist... Read More →
Mary is the owner of Pacific Hearing Conservation, Inc. a consulting firm in Seattle, WA, and has worked exclusively in occupational audiology since 1984. Dr. McDaniel is a Past President of the National Hearing Conservation Association and in 2003 received the NHCA‚Äôs Michael... Read More →
Global Training Manager, Honeywell Industrial Safety
Theresa Y. Schulz, PhD, LtCol, USAF (ret.) Dr Theresa Schulz is Global Training Manager for Honeywell Industrial Safety. With graduate degrees from the University of Texas and the Ohio State University, as well as almost 30 years of experience, Dr Schulz provides consultation... Read More →
Theresa H. Small, Au.D., CPS/A is an occupational audiologist consultant, CAOHC certified professional supervisor and course director and owner of Associates In Audiology, Inc., a professional consulting firm specializing in occupational audiology, and hearing loss prevention. Dr... Read More →
Tim Swisher, MA, CCC-A, FAAA Tim is an occupational audiologist and president of Hearing Safety. He received his B.S. at Indiana University of Pennsylvania and his M.A. in Audiology at Western Illinois University. He began his audiological career as an Army audiologist, retiring... Read More →
Laurie Wells, Au.D., is a Doctor of Audiology and Senior Regulatory Affairs Specialist for 3M Personal Safety Division, where she works with hearing protection and hearing conservation program regulatory issues globally. Her responsibilities include supporting evidenced-based standards... Read More →
Thursday February 7, 2019 2:45pm - 4:00pm PST
Dallas 5-7
Hearing is our most fundamentally human sense. Humanity wouldn't have advanced to its present level without the way hearing and its companion, voice, enabled early people to communicate and collaborate. In fact, the words communicate and community share the same Latin root! But, while language began with the sound of the spoken word, over time technology has translated it to visual form: from books to e-books, from letters to email to SMS to WhatsApp. Today, the world is dominated by screens and visual interfaces controlled with our fingers. At the same time, life has gotten faster and more complex, with vast amounts of information at our Cloud-connected thumb-tips and these interfaces have become increasing sources of distraction from living life, being present in the world around you. Today, however, headphones and earphones are poised to change this for the better. This may seem odd because stereo headphones are best known as a way to isolate yourself and enjoy music, privately. But, earphone technologies I'll describe will allow you to connect better with those around you, give your ears new powers akin to your eyes and allow us to better balance and mix our engagement with the physical and the virtual world.
Dan Gauger is a Distinguished Engineer at Bose Corporation where he has worked for more than 38 years. He is one of the two engineers at Bose who laid the foundation for its aviation, military, consumer headphone and hearing assistance businesses and he continues to shape the future... Read More →
The NIOSH tables used to adjust occupational audiograms for the effects of age were developed using cross-sectional trends observed in a small dataset (380 men; 206 women). The data for those tables were collected over 50 years ago and do not account for: (1) reductions in hearing loss prevalence; (2) worker ages beyond 60; (3) race/ethnicity differences; and (4) the flawed logic of applying group cross-sectional trends to individual longitudinal changes. Nationally-representative cross-sectional trends from NHANES (ages 12 to 85+; N=9937) were examined across gender and race/ethnicity using quantile regression. The results were consistent with: (1) reduced prevalence of hearing loss in the population relative to the NIOSH dataset; (2) slower rates of age-related change in hearing sensitivity; and (3) substantial differences across race/ethnicity. The cross-sectional trends provided a close match to median longitudinal changes in a large group of noise-exposed workers (76,000 tests), which could mean that the effects solely due to age remain overestimated by these trends. This study indicates that application of the age adjustments in the OSHA Hearing Conservation Amendment reduces the effectiveness of the hearing conservation program and lead to under-identification of occupational hearing losses.
Gregory A. Flamme, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Prior to joining SASRAC, Dr. Flamme held faculty positions at Western Michigan University and The University of Iowa. He completed his Ph.D. in Audiology at The University... Read More →
CDC's National Center on Environmental Health analyzed a representative sample of the U.S. adult population (aged 18 years) from a 2018 national marketing survey which included questions about hearing protection device (HPD) use during recreational exposure to loud sounds. The analysis revealed only 8 percent of respondents reported consistent use of an HPD at these types of events. Two thirds of the adults who were more likely to wear an HPD had at least some college education and half had higher income levels. Women and older adults were significantly less likely to use HPDs. These findings suggest the need for an increasing commitment to strengthen a public health focus on recreational noise exposure. This analysis illustrates the need for continued efforts to raise public awareness about the adverse health effects of excessive noise exposure at home and recreational settings, as well as the protective value of HPDs. Discussions between patients and healthcare providers regarding the consequences of excessive sound exposure and the potential health benefits from the use of HPD might provide opportunities to prevent or reduce harmful effects.
John Eichwald is an audiologist within the Office of Science in the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Environmental Health. John has over 40 years’ experience in the field of Audiology. He has published extensively and made numerous presentations... Read More →
For over 2 decades we have been hearing about pharmacologic otoprotective agents moving towards clinical use for noise- and drug-induced hearing loss. So why do we not yet have any FDA approved agents available? At what stage of development are we now? This lecture will discuss some of the issues in the approval process including clinical trials populations, clinical trials for temporary threshold shift versus permanent threshold shift, prophylaxis versus rescue, the use of FDA approved versus new agents in clinical trials, intellectual property issues, approval processes, drug delivery methods, safety and efficacy determinations and how advancements in one area can facilitate developments in other areas. The purpose of this presentation is to update clinical audiologists on the bench to bedside process of otoprotective agent development and to help them understand how they may be able to assist in the process and how they can respond to inquiries from patients and physicians. Once at least one of these agents is approved, this session should also help clinical audiologists understand how the area could further develop and expand for additional populations and applications. Time will be allotted for questions.
Kathleen CM Campbell, PhD is Research Professor and Distinguished Scholar at SIU School of Medicine in Springfield IL. She was a clinical audiologist for over 25 years but now focuses on NIH/DoD funded research only in ototoxicity/otoprotective agents. She has received Honors of the... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 9:25am - 9:45am PST
Grapevine A
The majority of research on middle ear muscle contractions (MEMC) has focused on its role in mediating the acoustic reflex. However, there is growing evidence for non-acoustic elicitors of MEMC. Recent work has established that voluntary motor behaviors such as eye closure and saccadic eye movements can reliably elicit MEMC. Additionally, our research team recently presented preliminary evidence that incidental activity of head and neck muscles concomitant with acoustic elicitors could modulate acoustically elicited MEMC. These results highlight that factors other than the experimental elicitor may influence the likelihood of observing an MEMC. The aim of this study is to describe an approach for quantifying the influence of incidental motor activity on MEMC and controlling for such influences. Results will be discussed in the context of damage-risk criteria for impulsive noise that include MEMC as a protective mechanism.
Associate Professor, SASRAC & Western Michigan University
Stephen Tasko, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences at Western Michigan University and Research Consultant with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Dr. Tasko earned his Ph.D. in Communication Disorders... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 10:15am - 10:35am PST
Grapevine A
Otoacoustic emission (OAE) testing and forward-pressure level calibration are on the cusp of revolutionizing evaluation of auditory damage in hearing-conservation programs (HCPs). HCPs rely on pure-tone audiometry (PTA), which has not seen a significant technological advance for decades. Technology now exists to increase the validity and reliability of PTA and OAEs, and to add objective evaluation of outer-hair-cell status, all of which could be used to reduce the prevalence of noise-induced hearing loss. We have identified 8 ways where OAEs can advance HCPs (often in conjunction with audiometry), including: evaluating the overall success of HCPs and of specific interventions for groups within shorter time frames than audiometry, detecting preclinical noise-induced change in the inner ear, efficiently tracking recovery from temporary threshold shift, predicting permanent-threshold-shift susceptibility or risk by early identification of low-level OAEs in normal-hearing ears, predicting permanent threshold shift susceptibility or risk with medial-olivocochlear testing via an OAE protocol, estimating hearing status in those unable to respond, evaluating suspected functional hearing loss, and educating personnel about inner-ear damage. Furthermore, forward-pressure level calibration improves not only the reliability of OAE measurements but PTA measurements as well, especially at those frequencies most vulnerable to noise damage.
Lynne Marshall was a Senior Scientist for the Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory for over 30 years before retiring in 2015. She specialized in hearing conservation with an emphasis on using otoacoustic emission (OAE) testing to help prevent hearing loss. In 2015 she was awarded... Read More →
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health Hearing Loss Prevention Cross Sector Council was formed from stakeholder partners representing academia, trade/professional organizations, industry, unions, and government agencies. The Council was charged, in part, with developing the National Occupational Research Agenda for Hearing Loss Prevention, to identify research, information, and actions most urgently needed to prevent occupational hearing loss. The Agenda provides a vehicle for stakeholders to describe the most relevant issues, gaps, and safety and health needs. It is also intended to guide or promote high priority research efforts on a national level, conducted by various entities; including government, higher education, and the private sector. The Agenda describes five high level objectives: Provide input for policies and guidelines that will inform best practices for hearing loss prevention efforts; Development of effective, evidence-based education designed to improve hearing conservation program outcomes for exposed workers and management; Noise control development, commercialization and widespread implementation on jobsites in key industries; ‚ Development of audiological tests for hearing loss prevention; and improving occupational hearing.
Captain, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
William J. Murphy is a Captain in the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps and is coordinator for the Hearing Loss Prevention cross sector for the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health.He is an active member of the National Hearing Conservation Association... Read More →
The equal energy hypothesis has been shown to be inadequate for describing the risk of hearing impairment due to impulsive noise exposure. Sound pressure level can be interpreted as the amount of sound energy. Kurtosis level can be interpreted as the type of sound energy. By using a proposed signal processing methodology both the sound pressure level and kurtosis level can be calculated with the same optimized time-frequency resolution. This provides more information to describe the distribution of the sound pressure time waveform. Results from the analysis of datasets of continuous and impulsive noises will be presented.
CDR Edward Zechmann is a Mechanical Engineer with extensive experience in acoustics. He is currently working on a Ph.D. in Acoustics from Penn State. In 2004 he came to NIOSH developing software and hardware for characterizing hazardous noise and vibrations from power tools. He... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 11:15am - 11:35am PST
Grapevine A
The world is increasingly sensed and measured by networked systems, opening up incredible opportunities for expanding human knowledge. While sensory perception remains bounded to our immediate surroundings, AI systems take in vast quantities of data and provide insight on a global scale. Naturally then, we are spending more time consuming, sharing, and acting on high-level machine analyses. However, if we grow to rely exclusively on discrete knowledge distilled from data, we are in danger of dulling our own perceptual sensitivities. In this talk, I lay out a future in which the sensor networks that blanket our world become extensions of human perception, forming the basis for a restoration of sensitivity as well as a transformative augmentation of memory and cognition. To ground this vision, I introduce a wetland restoration project called the Tidmarsh Living Observatory, which has played host to a series of novel environmental monitoring systems, sensory wearables, and AI interfaces. Using my and others’ work as examples, I argue that non-visual perceptual modalities, and hearing specifically, will underpin an imminent revolution in human-computer interaction, and vastly enrich the positive transformative potential of AI. Our perceptual sensitivities provide us the means to acquire new knowledge. They guide our attention, spark curiosity and stir emotion, fostering the kind of intuitions, sensibilities, and care on which action for the future is predicated. What does climate change sound like?
Gershon Dublon is a creative researcher, electrical engineer, and co-founder (with artist Xin Liu) of slow immediate, an NYC-based creative engineering and technology production studio. His dissertation, Sensor(y) Landscapes, introduces devices and environments that make networks... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 12:05pm - 1:30pm PST
Longhorn Hall D
The Comprehensive Hearing Health Program of the Department of Defense Hearing Center of Excellence (HCE) aims to reduce hearing injury through Education, Protection, and Monitoring. Hazardous noise pervades military operations, and tinnitus and hearing loss are the top two service-connected disabilities. HCE developed educational materials covering topics like: causes of noise-induced hearing loss (NIHL), hazardous noise sources, and exposure reduction. Educational needs may differ among individuals because NIHL risks vary with exposure, individual behaviors, and genetics. Therefore, HCE aims to develop education, customizable to individual needs. The Precision Medicine Initiative study quantifies current educational impacts, and characterizes three precision preventive medicine elements: 1) knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors (KABB), 2) noise exposures, and 3) genetic susceptibility. Hearing-related KABBs were surveyed before and after education, and at three months. Audiometric tests and saliva samples were collected for genetic analysis of NIHL biomarkers. Seven-day total-noise exposure was measured in a subcohort via diaries and wearable dosimeters. Analyses will identify knowledge gaps, classify groups by exposure, explore genetic biomarkers of NIHL, and discuss future development of a combined factors NIHL risk-profile matrix to inform the development of tailored health education materials and delivery strategy.
The objective of this research is to develop a portable, field-validated auditory localization training system for the U.S. military. Convergent experiments designed to generate a validated portable localization training system involve: 1) developing an empirically-optimized auditory localization training methodology, 2) developing a portable localization training system validated against a laboratory-grade system, 3) evaluating the efficacy of the localization training with TCAPS and HPDs, and 4) validating the portable training system against a field localization task using live weapon fire. The optimized auditory training methodology is built upon Virginia Tech‚ DRILCOM system. Two pilot studies determined the stimuli and number of replications within each training unit to be used in the optimized method. Results demonstrated that training with a tonally-dissonant signal that incorporated interaural timing and level differences (ITDs and ILDs) transferred to untrained, military-relevant signals, but only those which provided ITDs and ILDs. Results of the portable system validation experiment that incorporates the optimized methodology is reported. Practical applications of auditory localization training and test systems are discussed.
MAJ Kara Cave is currently assigned to the U.S. Army Aeromedical Research Lab at Fort Rucker, AL. Currently, her research interests include human factors issues involved in tactical communication and protective systems use, auditory localization, blast related noise-induced hearing... Read More →
Dr. Casali is the Grado Chaired Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech, and a Board-Certified Professional Ergonomist (CPE). He founded the Auditory Systems Laboratory in 1983, a versatile auditory/acoustics research facility at Virginia Tech that he directs... Read More →
Dr. Lee is a research assistant professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. He received a Ph.D. in Human Factors Engineering at Virginia Tech in 2011. As a manager of Auditory Systems Lab at Virginia Tech, he conducts various projects related to product design... Read More →
LTC Thompson has served 17 years as a Military Intelligence and Operations Research Systems Analysis (ORSA) officer in the U.S. Army. He is a licensed Professional Engineer in Industrial Engineering. Brandon is a Ph.D. candidate in Industrial and Systems Engineering with a concentration... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 1:50pm - 2:10pm PST
Grapevine A
This presentation will describe a military study with the intent to characterize noise and blast exposures experienced by specific subgroups in the military population and to identify with an unprecedented level of detail any resulting acute or short-term-acquired hearing changes. Many military operations cannot fully abate noise hazards without decreasing mission success, and the benefits of hearing-protection technologies are limited when exposures are unexpected or exceed a device's protective capabilities. These realities coupled with Veterans Affairs compensation for hearing loss and tinnitus signal the need to develop pharmaceutical interventions (both prophylaxis and rescue) for noise-induced hearing loss, yet the dose-response relationship with noise and the full spectrum of noise-induced auditory damage are still not fully understood. By employing state-of-the-art noise and blast measurement methods, boothless audiometry technology, comprehensive hearing assessment, and big-data analytics, this study will characterize the exact conditions in which our Service Members experience injurious noise, and develop a better understanding of the effects of injurious noise on hearing function. Study aims, design, and preliminary results will be discussed.
Quintin Hecht, AuD, is a research audiologist and project manager for the Department of Defense (DoD) Hearing Center of Excellence (HCE) at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas. Dr. Hecht joined the DoD HCE in 2016 and currently also serves as an Army Reserve Audiologist for the... Read More →
Christopher J. Smalt is a technical staff member in the Human Health and Performance Systems Group at the MIT Lincoln Laboratory.His current work focuses on computational modeling of hearing damage mechanisms and the effect of noise exposure on hearing and cognitive performance.As... Read More →
Although acoustic trauma has been used loosely to refer to almost any adverse effect of sounds on hearing (whether temporary or permanent, acute onset or developing over years), it is now generally accepted that acoustic trauma means a permanent pure tone threshold shift from a single exposure, and can result from either impulsive noise (e.g., gunfire) or continuous noise. Ward (1991) reviewed the literature and described an inverse relationship between intensity and duration for continuous noise; individual cases of acoustic trauma occurred after tonal exposures lasting only seconds at 138 dB SPL, and after longer exposures at lower levels (8 minutes at 120 dB). In contrast to these cases, which could represent unusually susceptible people, much more intense exposures (e.g., 32 minutes at 130 dB) caused only temporary threshold shifts in groups of volunteer subjects. We updated this review based on literature published in the 28 years since Ward's paper, searching PubMed and our own files, and asking approximately 50 international colleagues for documented cases that had escaped our search. We found no evidence of acoustic trauma for tonal exposures less than 120 dB. At levels above 130 dB, exposures lasting only seconds can cause acoustic trauma.
Elliott, a retired 3M Division Scientist, is now an acoustical consultant. For over 40 years he studied hearing protection, hearing conservation, and related topics, and authored 17 textbook chapters and over 75 published articles, and is one of the lead editors of the 6th Edition... Read More →
Clinical Professor, Dept. of Otolaryngology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio
Robert Dobie MD is clinical professor of otolaryngology at the University of Texas (San Antonio) and partner in Dobie Associates, providing consultation in hearing, balance, hearing conservation, and ear disorders (www.dobieassociates.net). After residency training at Stanford University... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 3:00pm - 3:20pm PST
Grapevine A
1. Identify opportunities for introducing improvements
2. Classify internal stakeholders
3. Review methods of continual improvement Improvements can be based on many small changes rather than radical changes.
Ideas can and should come from the workers themselves, they are less likely to be radically different, and therefore easier to implement. Ideas can and should come from the talents of the workforce, as opposed to top-down implementation or consultants which could be expensive and potential sources of conflict.
All employees should continually be seeking ways to improve their own performance. It helps encourage workers to take ownership for their hearing health which requires an element of education and awareness. Applying the Plan, Do, Check, Act (PDCA) cycle as a quality management problem-solving approach and as a tool for stakeholder buy-in and organizational adoption of hearing conservation improvements. A particular challenge for organizations in implementing the PDCA cycle in hearing conservation is being able to demonstrate leading performance indicators. Automated, cost effective, accurate and simple measuring and reporting on performance can be of large organizational value by demonstrating ROI and supporting continual improvement and stakeholder buy in.
Prior to working in the NIHL field Dr David Greenberg worked as an NHS Clinical Audiologist in London, UK, and as a Research Audiologist in hearable medical device trials and oto-pharmaceutical clinical trials. Following the completion of a PhD in Auditory Neuroscience focussing on... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 3:20pm - 3:40pm PST
Grapevine A
Millions of farm and rural youth are exposed to hazardous noise as they work, live on, and visit farms. Children exposed to high noise are at risk for academic failure and behavioral problems, in addition to the risks of noise-induced hearing loss and other somatic effects of noise. However, most farm and rural youth are not served by hearing conservation programs. The role of technology in promoting health behavior among youth is of great interest since youth are highly receptive to multimedia audiovisual presentations, interactive websites, and smartphone apps. In this systematic review, we examined the use of technology and other features of programs designed to increase use of hearing protection among noise-exposed youth in production agriculture. The number of published reports of hearing conservation programs for youth was low (n=10). Assessment of program efficacy was not included in most reports, and multiple methodological limitations constrain their utility to public health. Some recent small intervention studies using low-cost technology-based educational approaches had evidence of efficacy as they demonstrated significant improvement in hearing protection knowledge and behavior in multiple settings across the United States. Integrating technology in future hearing conservation programs offers promise, in that this approach offers low-cost and youth-friendly characteristics.
Assistant Professor, Indiana University, Bloomington
Khalid Khan is an Assistant Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health at the Indiana University School of Public Health at Bloomington. His research interests are centered on the broad area of environmental epidemiology with specific emphasis on prevention of environmental... Read More →
The 1994 NIOSH publication Preventing Hearing Loss: A Practical Guide suggested that the maximum noise-exposure level should be 85 dBA Leq,8. Occupational Noise Exposure, Revised Criteria 1998, made that suggestion a formal NIOSH Recommended Exposure Limit. Since then, many other countries, most recently Canada, have adopted the NIOSH REL as a Permissible Exposure Limit. There are two common confusing misuses of the value of 85 dBA. The first is labeling it as safe. At a working-life exposure level of 85 dBA Leq,8 between 8 and 12 percent will develop material hearing impairment. A safe noise-exposure level with 0 percent developing material work-related noise-induced hearing loss, it would have been 75 dBA Leq,8. The second misuse is confusing an exposure level for a noise level. An exposure level is determined by averaging noise levels over a specified time, hence the equivalent level for 8 hours. A noise level is of little value since the time of exposure is not specified. This type of misuse is often found in the safety portion of earphones along with what would be fairly entertaining descriptions of how to determine the output level if the hearing of the consumer weren't at risk.
Dr. Franks is the former Chief of the Hearing Loss Prevention Section of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH). While at NIOSH he directed the nation‚Äôs research into the improvement of hearing protectors and testing methods, directed the national... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 4:00pm - 4:20pm PST
Grapevine A
Grounds maintenance professionals use a variety of noise-producing equipment and are at a high-risk for occupational hearing loss. The most common method of hearing loss prevention is the use of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Similar to other industrial situations, the preferable solution for protecting workers from the harmful effects of noise is to control noise at the source, which can eliminate the need for PPE and Hearing Loss Prevention Programs. One effective control strategy is to replace noisy equipment with quieter equipment. For instance, battery-powered tools are typically quieter than gas-powered tools, and have additional ergonomic, environmental, and health-related benefits. This presentation is based on a field comparison of worker noise dose and sound levels for two different hedge-trimming crews: 1) one using gas-powered equipment and 2) the other using battery-powered equipment. Dosimetry and sound level measurements show that the crew using battery-powered equipment had significantly lower noise exposures than the crew using gasoline-powered versions. Furthermore, the management of this grounds maintenance crew provided researchers with a great deal of information regarding efforts to prevent worker hearing loss. These efforts include evaluation of the feasibility of switching over to battery-powered equipment and a systematic approach to buying quieter equipment.
Bryan Beamer has over 20 years of work experience as an Industrial Engineer and Educator, including: work as an Industrial Engineer at Rittal Corporation; experience as a Research Engineer at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health; over ten years as an Associate... Read More →
In this 11th round of Safe-in-Sound Awards the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA) will recognize organizations that document measurable achievements in hearing loss prevention. The submissions are evaluated against key performance indicators in a rigorous review process designed to capture and evaluate the successes. The attendees will get to hear about the innovative strategies and the success stories from the winners themselves firsthand; information which will be shared later to a broader community. Join us for the remarkable presentations! #wewanttohear!
Scott Schneider is a Certified Industrial Hygienist. He has worked on occupational safety and health issues in the Labor movement for the past 38 years. He worked for the Carpenters Union, the Workers‚Äô Institute for Safety and Health (WISH), the Center for Construction Research... Read More →
Friday February 8, 2019 4:40pm - 5:15pm PST
Grapevine A
Previous research showed that one can reach a similar level of open ear azimuthal localization performance given sufficient training with certain TCAPS. The objective of this research was to compare the rate of learning under different hearing conditions, including over-the-ear (OTE) and in-the-ear (ITE) devices, and the open ear. The localization training/test system was modified from the DRILCOM system. Three hearing conditions, open-ear, Etymotic ER125-GSE (ITE), and Peltor ComTac III (OTE), were presented in counterbalanced order. Each single session of 20 minutes consisted of paired combinations of training and testing trials, and comprised a "Learning Unit (LU)." Naive, normal-hearing subjects completed 12 LUs for each hearing condition. The results showed that subjects training with the ITE device learned at a statistically similar pace (slope) as with the open ear, and their absolute accuracy was within 7% of the open ear after full training, improving from 40% correct starting with the 1st LU to 78% correct after 12 LUs. However, learning rate was significantly worse than open ear with the OTE device, starting with 24% accuracy and ending at 37% accuracy after 12 LUs. Essentially, the OTE device never approached open ear performance, even after extensive training.
Dr. Lee is a research assistant professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech. He received a Ph.D. in Human Factors Engineering at Virginia Tech in 2011. As a manager of Auditory Systems Lab at Virginia Tech, he conducts various projects related to product design... Read More →
Dr. Casali is the Grado Chaired Professor of Industrial and Systems Engineering at Virginia Tech, and a Board-Certified Professional Ergonomist (CPE). He founded the Auditory Systems Laboratory in 1983, a versatile auditory/acoustics research facility at Virginia Tech that he directs... Read More →
Saturday February 9, 2019 9:00am - 9:20am PST
Appaloosa 3
Progressive and permanent sensorineural hearing loss associated with noise exposure (NIHL) is a chronic health condition in agricultural workers. In addition to the impact of hearing loss on communication, hearing loss and exposure to noise have negative impacts on balance, cardiovascular health, mental health, and cognitive skills. Recent large-scale public health studies among elderly and middle-aged persons indicated hearing loss presents a significant and independent risk factor for the development of dementia. This project will examine the hearing status and cognitive skills of aging farmers and ranchers over the age of 50. Audiological assessment and a hearing health history will be obtained for each participant. Pure tone average and Speech Intelligibility Index will be computed. Due to the fact that agricultural workers often have concomitant hearing loss, the memory and cognitive processing tests used for this study will assess cognitive status through the visual and visual-motor domains. The following screening tests are proposed for the first phase of this study: The Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MOCA), Stroop Color and Word Test (STROOP) and the Digit Symbol Digit Symbol Substitution Test (DSS). The data obtained will provide new information regarding the impact of long-term hearing loss on cognition in older agricultural workers, and also provide a foundation of knowledge for longitudinal studies.
Jan Allison Moore received graduate degrees from the University of Illinois (Ph.D.) and Purdue University (M.S.) and her undergraduate degree from the University of Central Arkansas.She also completed a graduate certificate program in Public Health at the University of Nebraska Medical... Read More →
Saturday February 9, 2019 9:00am - 9:20am PST
Appaloosa 2
Numerous damage-risk criteria (DRC) for impulsive noise have included a role for middle ear muscle contractions (MEMC). One DRC proposes that if an individual expects an impulse, an MEMC will occur in the listener in anticipation of the impulse. Few studies have systematically examined reflexive and/or anticipatory MEMC in response to impulsive noise. In recent years, our research group has been focused on filling this knowledge gap. This presentation will (1) present results from a series of laboratory studies of reflexive and anticipatory MEMC that indicate that MEMC should not be included in DRC and; (2) describe the details of a large, ongoing field study designed to assess MEMC during live-fire exercises with rifles. This latter study will examine if results obtained from laboratory studies generalize to an environment common to the warfighter.
Gregory A. Flamme, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Prior to joining SASRAC, Dr. Flamme held faculty positions at Western Michigan University and The University of Iowa. He completed his Ph.D. in Audiology at The University... Read More →
Associate Professor, SASRAC & Western Michigan University
Stephen Tasko, Ph.D. is an Associate Professor in the Department of Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences at Western Michigan University and Research Consultant with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Dr. Tasko earned his Ph.D. in Communication Disorders... Read More →
Hearing loss and language proficiency are key factors that can impact verbal communications in tactical operations. To investigate these factors, three groups of participants (control, non-fluent, hearing-impaired) were paired with a standard individual (fluent normal hearing) of the same gender in a task of word discrimination using the Modified Rhyme Test (MRT). This was carried out over the radio channel of two tactical communication devices with integrated hearing protection, while immersed in an 85-dBA simulated military noise. Performance on the MRT was similar with the control and hearing-impaired groups. Significantly lower scores were found, however, in many situations when the non-fluent group of participants acted as listeners or talkers, compared to the two other groups. MRT scores were also consistently lower with the device configured with an in-ear voice pick-up microphone compared to the other device using an external mouth microphone, particularly for females. In contrast, the talk-through setting had little effect on the results. Overall, the study indicated that language proficiency and the method of sensing the talker voice are key issues to consider with tactical radio communications. These findings are critical in the context of multi-country deployments.
Christian Giguere is a Professor in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology at the University of Ottawa. His research interests include speech communication and warning sound perception, hearing protection, and auditory fitness for duty. He has authored over 125 journal articles... Read More →
Hazardous noise exposure has been identified as a hearing health risk in sugar industry workers (Rao et al, 2015, Rocha et al, 2010). Suryaprakasa et al (2015) have reported sound pressure levels ranging between 85 to 96 dB[A] in the working population of a sugar mill in Andrhra Pradesh, India. Representative noise dosimetry studies were conducted on 51 workers performing 22 sugar cane mill jobs in a Guatemalan sugar mill. The majority of departments/jobs exceeded the ACGIH/NIOSH recommended exposure limit of 100% noise dose (85 dBA time-weighted average). Noise doses ranged from a low of 51.9% to an extreme of 25174%. Ninety percent of noise dosimetry samples were between 50% to 1200% dose. Sugar mill workers are at risk of noise-induced hearing loss and a hearing loss prevention program including engineering noise control is recommended for these workers.
Doctor of Audiology Student, University of Northern Colorado Student
Ashley Stumpf is a 4thyear doctor of audiology (Au.D.) student at the University of Northern Colorado. Currently, she is completing a final year externship at a neuro-otology practice, Denver Ear Associates. Her academic interests include hearing loss prevention due to noise exposure... Read More →
Alex A. Cruz Aguilar, MD es Jefe de servicios de salud de Pantaleon, S.A. Operación Guatemala, donde gestiona programas de salud médica, salud odontológica y salud ocupacional. Es médico y Cirujano de la Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, tiene Post grado en Ginecología... Read More →
Dr. Claudia Asensio, DrPH, RN manages the Sustainability and New Products division for Pantaleon, a sugarcane, ethanol and energy production company headquartered in Guatemala with operations in five Latin American countries. Sustainability integrates environmental and social systems... Read More →
Grant Erlandson is a PhD candidate at Colorado State University in the industrial hygiene program. He received his B.S. and M.S. in Environmental Health from Colorado State. His research has focused on workplace exposures to noise, chemical and biological contaminants, and subsequent... Read More →
Jennifer Ruths, B.A., is a 4th year audiology doctoral student and will graduate from the University of Northern Colorado in May 2019 with her Au.D.. She is currently completing her externship at Nemours/A.I. duPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware. Jen’s interests... Read More →
Lee S. Newman, M.D., M.A. is Professor of Environmental and Occupational Health, and Professor of Epidemiology in the Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado. He is also Professor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary Sciences and Critical Care Medicine in the... Read More →
Lyndsay K. Krisher, MPH is Senior Professional Research Assistant in the Center for Health, Work & Environment (CHWE) at the Colorado School of Public Health, University of Colorado Denver. She serves as the project manager for the CHWE’s international Total Worker Health® research... Read More →
Williams D. Pilloni Alessio, MD, is a physician and surgeon graduated from the University of San Carlos of Guatemala. Currently, he is the coordinator of the Occupational Health area at Pantaleon’s operations in Guatemala. He oversees planning, organization and execution of Occupational... Read More →
Saturday February 9, 2019 9:25am - 9:45am PST
Appaloosa 2
Human outer ear occlusion is commonly associated with the so-called occlusion effect, significantly noticeable at low frequencies when wearing an intra-aural occlusion device. This effect is known as a source of discomfort notably responsible for the non-wearing of hearing aids and earplugs hearing protectors. The cause of the occlusion effect is the propagation of noise from human body internal sources by bone conduction to the cochlea, in particularly via the transmission path through the outer ear. The preponderance of this path depends on the ear canal entrance condition (occluded or not) and on the frequency, for reasons that, in the light of the scientific literature, seem unclear. The occlusion effect is sometimes explained by the fact that the noise radiated into the ear canal by its walls cannot escape from it when it is occluded contrary to the open case. Sometimes, this effect is rather explained by the role of the acoustic impedance of the ear canal seen by its walls which would control the pressure radiated by them. The present study returns in detail on the often acclaimed theories of the occlusion effect in order to revisit the understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of this phenomenon using a finite element model of the outer ear.
Currently PhD student in acoustic and vibration in the ICAR laboratory at the Ecole de Technologie Superieure (ETS), I am studying the application of vibro-acoustic meta-materials in the field of hearing protection. The main objective is to improve the acoustic comfort (sound attenuation... Read More →
It is well documented that firearms produce sound pressure levels deleterious to hearing. Hearing protective devices (HPDs) are the first line of hearing loss prevention for patients who use firearms; however, they may not sufficiently protect hearing due to fit issues and level of protection. There is a growing interest by the public in the use of suppressors as hearing protection. Whereas recent research has demonstrated that suppressors reduce sound levels to the ear, their use as a HPD is controversial. Many misconceptions exist about their protective value among both patients and healthcare providers. Via online survey, this study examined audiologists’ knowledge, education level, and self-efficacy regarding HPDs/suppressors. Data from 137 respondents across the United States was analyzed. The demographics of the respondents were similar to those seen for previously reported ASHA surveys of providers. This study aimed to examine the relationships among audiologists’ personal firearms use, demographic factors, graduate and post-graduate education, knowledge, and self-efficacy. Study outcomes can be used to prompt further research into the state of graduate and continuing education for hearing loss prevention, the use of various HPDs and the the synergistic effects of traditional HPDs and suppressors.
Doctor of Audiology (AuD) Student, Advanced Hearing Center
Alexander Morris is a fourth-year doctor of audiology (AuD) student at the University of Texas at Dallas currently completing his externship at the Advanced Hearing Center (Sugar Land, TX). He serves on the board of the Student Academy of Audiology as chair for the Public Outreach... Read More →
The purpose of this study is to identify and describe noise exposures and hearing loss among farmers, to explore factors that influence farmers‚ a high-frequency pure tone average hearing thresholds, and to evaluate changes in hearing over time due to a point-source intervention. The intervention consisted of a box containing hearing protection devices placed near loud noise sources on the farm. Maximum noise exposures were at 102 dB. Farmers have high-frequency hearing loss. Standard threshold shifts and high-frequency notches were identified, many affecting left ears. Farmers in the control group had poorer low-frequency hearing than farmers in the intervention group (p=0.01). Farmers experience high-frequency hearing loss. Left ears were less sensitive than right ears. Presbycusis is evident in the study population. However, sensorineural hearing loss appears to be common among this group of farmers especially in the left ear. Long-term follow-up is warranted.
Associate Professor, University of Nebraska Medical Center
Dr. Chandran Achutan is an Associate Professor at the University of Nebraska Medical Center College of Public Health. After receiving his doctorate in Industrial Hygiene at the University of Iowa, he worked at the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health prior to joining... Read More →
Industrial hygienists have long recognized that excessive occupational noise exposure is a health risk for noise-induced hearing loss. However, in the past several decades, noise exposures both inside and outside the workplace have been potentially linked to additional health outcomes. With the objective of identifying safe levels of exposure, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) National Center for Environmental Health has conducted a formal review process to better understand the range of health risks potentially resulting from noise. To accomplish this objective, eleven systematic reviews have been conducted to identify what noise levels, and for how long, are associated with eleven specific health end points: 1) hearing loss; 2) ischemic heart disease; 3) hypertension; 4) mental health/psychological disorders; 5) injuries; 6) sleep disturbance; 7) low birth weight/premature birth; 8) endocrine disruption; 9) cognitive impairment; 10) obesity/overweight, and; 11) cancer or tumorigenesis. Each review involved a systematic literature review and rating of the available evidence; reviews also included a meta-analysis of health risks when sufficient evidence was available. Using these reviews, CDC will be able to raise awareness and enhance prevention strategies.
Richard L. Neitzel, PhD, CIH is an Associate Professor and Associate Chair of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at the University of Michigan (UM) School of Public Health.He has published nearly 100 peer-reviewed manuscripts focused on exposures to, and impacts of, noise... Read More →
The accurate classification of nonverbal human produced audio events opens the door to numerous applications beyond health monitoring. Voluntary events, such as tongue clicking and teeth chattering, may lead to a novel way of silent interface command. Involuntary events, such as coughing and clearing the throat, may advance the current state-of-the-art in hearing health research. The challenge of such applications is the balance between the processing capabilities of a small intra-aural device and the accuracy of classification. In this pilot study, 10 nonverbal audio events are captured inside the ear canal blocked by an intra-aural device. The performance of three classifiers is investigated: Gaussian Mixture Model (GMM), Support Vector Machine and Multi-Layer Perceptron. Each classifier is trained using three different feature vector structures constructed using the mel-frequency cepstral (MFCC) coefficients and their derivatives. Fusion of the MFCCs with the auditory-inspired amplitude modulation features (AAMF) is also investigated. Classification is compared between binaural and monaural training sets as well as for noisy and clean conditions. The highest accuracy is achieved at 75.45% using the GMM classifier with the binaural MFCC+AAMF clean training set. Accuracy of 73.47% is achieved by training and testing the classifier with the binaural clean and noisy dataset.
Rachel is a passionate teacher, an inquisitive researcher, an adventurous cyclist and an ardent music lover. She completed her B.S and M.S in Electrical Engineering at MSU. She moved to Montreal in 2012 to follow her research interests. In June 2016, she completed her PhD at Ecole... Read More →
Nearly all active-duty personnel in the Fire Department of the City of New York (FDNY) responded to the World Trade Center (WTC) attacks on 9/11/2001. These firefighters and emergency medical services (EMS) workers were likely exposed to noise and other ototoxic agents. Increased rates of self-reported hearing problems have been found among members of the WTC Health Registry, particularly if they were highly exposed to the WTC dust cloud. In this study of 8,646 FDNY personnel we evaluated changes in hearing over the decade after 9/11/2001 using audiometric records from regular occupational health exams. In the first analysis, thresholds before the attack were compared with the first available results after the event to identify systematic trends in 15 dB threshold shifts across exposure level. In the second analysis, we fit exponential time-to-event models to assess whether participants with greater exposures were at greater risk of 15 dB changes in threshold. FDNY personnel who arrived at the WTC site on the morning of 9/11/2001 had greater odds of a threshold shift pre-9/11 to post-9/11, and personnel who arrived earlier and spent more time at the WTC site during the recovery effort were at greater risk of hearing loss.
Gregory A. Flamme, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Prior to joining SASRAC, Dr. Flamme held faculty positions at Western Michigan University and The University of Iowa. He completed his Ph.D. in Audiology at The University... Read More →
Brian Felsen is a certified occupational hearing conservationist (COHC), a Dangerous Decibels certified educator, and proud Minnesota native who studied business management in Santa Barbara, CA. He returned to his home state where his work and passion for hearing conservation intersected... Read More →
Saturday February 9, 2019 2:25pm - 2:55pm PST
High Plains 1-2
Damage-risk criteria (DRC) for noise are intended to describe the relationship between an acoustic signal and the risk of harm to the auditory system. Exposure limits for impulsive noises are expressed in maximum permissible exposures (MPE). There are a variety of DRC for impulsive noises, and the exposure limits imposed by each can vary widely. DRC models rely on different theoretical constructs (e.g., A-weighted equivalent energy, cochlear input signals, expected basilar membrane activity) and assumptions, but the outcomes of these models could be related. If strong, these relationships might permit the transformation of the outcomes of one model to another. In this study, recorded impulses from 49 firearms at each of 18 microphone locations were used to evaluate the predictability of the outcomes of one DRC based on the outcomes of a different DRC. The results suggested that the interrelationships permit reasonably accurate transformations of outcomes across DRC.
Gregory A. Flamme, Ph.D. is a Senior Scientist with Stephenson and Stephenson Research and Consulting (SASRAC). Prior to joining SASRAC, Dr. Flamme held faculty positions at Western Michigan University and The University of Iowa. He completed his Ph.D. in Audiology at The University... Read More →
Deanna Meinke, Ph.D., is a professor in the Department of Audiology and Speech-Language Sciences at the University of Northern Colorado and is the Co-Director of the Dangerous Decibels public health partnership for prevention of noise-induced hearing loss. Her research interests... Read More →
SoundPrint and Ear Peace:Save Your Hearing Foundation partnered to raise noise-pollution awareness in Miami Dade County by focusing on the collection, analysis and distribution of sound level data in local restaurants. This case study reviews the entire process (including both successful and unsuccessful methods utilized) during a year-long effort to educate the public about the dangers of noise pollution. The end result is a noise pollution awareness campaign playbook that NHCA members and other community leaders can use to replicate studies and results in their own cities and communities.
Executive Director, Ear Peace Save Your Hearing Foundation
I am the Executive Director of Ear Peace Foundation), an educational nonprofit organization committed to educating young people about NIHL and its prevention.
Greg is the founder of SoundPrint, a company that aims to measure and collect sound level data to be used for research purposes with respect to raising awareness of noise pollution
Saturday February 9, 2019 3:15pm - 3:35pm PST
High Plains 1-2
Hearing loss is one of the most prevalent chronic health conditions and yet there are various obstacles that affect the logistics of timely and appropriate hearing testing, not the least of which is the requirement of a sound booth for traditional audiometric testing. Sound booths represent a significant capital expense and relegate prime clinical real estate for a singular function. Another significant barrier to efficacious testing is the reality that patients and providers often don't occupy the same locale, making it necessary for one or both to commute in order to connect. The employment of boothless technology, particularly when paired with telemedicine increases access and cuts costs, benefiting patients and providers alike.
Dr. Anna McCraney earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Speech and Hearing Science from the University of Wyoming and her Doctorate of Audiology (Au.D.) from Baylor College of Medicine. She is a board certified audiologist and a fellow of the American Academy of Audiology, the... Read More →
Ototronix designs and manufactures advanced hearing technologies for the restoration of hearing. Our hearing implant technologies deliver better hearing for enhanced communication with friends and family.
Saturday February 9, 2019 3:55pm - 4:15pm PST
High Plains 1-2
There is growing concern amongst hearing health organisations around the world that increasing headphone use could be permanently damaging the hearing of headphone users. The World Health Organisation report 1 billion people at risk of hearing loss claim that for most people hearing loss is due to large sound doses, the biggest source of which is from headphone use. Exposure to large sound doses (combination of how long, how loud and energy of what you listen to) can destroy your auditory hair cells giving you permanent hearing loss. 68% of headphone users, in a company survey, are aware of the risks, though few of act as the only information they get is from the simple volume level warning from their phone, which, if adhered to, makes their content inaudible in many listening situations. As a result most users ignore the warnings and listen too loud, for too long and damage our hearing. Is the solution is to allow us to listen as loud as we wish for as long as is safe? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAIDBsgDbkM Could we start to change behaviour by providing easy to understand sound dose based information with optional protection a Fitbit for the ears perhaps?
Stephen Wheatley is one of the Founders and Managing Director (CEO) of HearAngel/LimitEar Ltd a company established in 2010 to protect the hearing of people at work who use headphones in line with the occupational hearing protection regulations. Having supplied major corporations... Read More →
Saturday February 9, 2019 4:15pm - 4:35pm PST
High Plains 1-2