- Hi, guys, in this
video I'm gonna teach you about the five main differences between audiologists and
hearing instrument specialists. Coming up. (upbeat music) Dr. Cliff Olson from
Applied Hearing Solutions, and on this channel, I cover
all things hearing-related to make you better
informed about hearing loss and your treatment options. So you walk into a hearing aid clinic and you get a guy in a white lab coat. You see all the
certifications on the wall, so you ask him, "Where
did you go to school?" And he's like, "What do you mean "where did I go to school?" And you're like, "You
know, to become a doctor." And he's like, "Oh, hold on, no. "I'm not a doctor, I'm a
hearing instrument specialist." Now, it's not your fault
for thinking he's a doctor. The white lab coat can
be a little misleading, and he still may be completely capable of providing you with
excellent hearing healthcare, but there are some major differences between audiologists and
hearing instrument specialists that you should know about. So let me give you some background. Back in the 1960s, 1970s, audiologists were prohibited
from dispensing hearing aids by their professional
service organizations, for instance, ASHA. What would happen is an audiologist would essentially do the hearing test and make the recommendation
of a hearing aid, and then they would refer them to a hearing instrument specialist to complete the fitting. It was also during that
time that audiologists were seeking to expand
their scope of practice to include education, auditory
rehabilitation, and research. Hearing instrument
specialists were also seeking to certify and protect their
well-established positions of retail businessmen. Basically, a battle ensued
between the two professions, something that I'm not
necessarily proud about, but may have been necessary for the growth of both professions. Ultimately, it resulted in audiologists and hearing instrument specialists being able to fit patients
with hearing aids. Now, before I get into
the differences between audiologists and hearing
instrument specialists, it's important that you know that I think that both of them are necessary to treat this massive population growth that we have of individuals with hearing loss. Okay, so we got that out of the way. Now that you know the history of audiologists and hearing
instrument specialists, we can now move on to the differences. Difference number one is education. Education may very well be
the largest difference between an audiologist and a hearing
instrument specialist. Audiologists are now
required to earn a doctorate, which means eight additional
years of education beyond a high school diploma. The best programs are very
selective and competitive to incoming students, and the programs are very rigorous and require a full understanding
of hearing healthcare in order to pass the program. Hearing instrument specialists can be required to complete up to a two year associate's degree, depending on the state that
they wanna practice in, and that degree doesn't necessarily have to be in hearing instrument sciences, but it can be. Difference number two is
education requirements. Both professions are required to complete an exam to become licensed in a particular state. Audiologists are required
to pass the praxis exam, which encompasses all areas of audiology, from diagnostic testing,
to cochlear implants, to auditory rehabilitation, to pediatrics, to you name it, it covers it all. It's intended to ensure that
an audiologist understands all aspects of hearing healthcare. Hearing instrument specialists
must also pass a state exam, which includes hearing aid testing, fitting, and ear mold impressions, and it's for the sole purpose
of fitting hearing aids. Okay, difference number
three is clinical practice. The required amount of time spent in supervised clinical practice can be vastly different between audiologists and hearing
instrument specialists. Most audiology programs
who are ASHA accredited require over 2000 hours of
supervised clinical experience under a seasoned audiologist. Many students will exceed this number, and some students
receive the bare minimum. Hearing instrument specialists
generally have to practice under another hearing
instrument specialist if they're on a temporary license. If they're on a permanent license, it depends on the state, but most of them do not require that they have any supervision at that time. Difference number four is research. This is another really big difference between the two. Research essentially determines what the best practices are in the hearing industry. Hearing healthcare is constantly changing because of new discoveries and rapidly changing technology. Being able to determine
what is good research can dictate what is taken and
put into clinical practice. Audiologists are generally required to complete a capstone project during their time in school. What this is is it's a research project that they develop from beginning to end to really give them a
complete understanding of how research works, and what dictates whether or not research is
valid and good or not good, and therefore, what you
should take and incorporate into clinical practice. Hearing instrument specialists may be required to read some research if they attended an
associate's degree program, but there is no requirement for them to conduct any kind of
research during that program. Difference number five, certification. Essentially, any
certification that is obtained by an audiologist or hearing
instrument specialist is done at their own free will, and it is showing their patients that they are upholding
that certification board's standards for ethics and care. Audiologists have the ability to join a variety of different
certifying associations, a couple of them being ASHA, which is the American Speech- Language-Hearing Association, also the American Board of Audiology, also the Academy of Doctors of Audiology, so on so forth. There's also state boards
that you can essentially be a part of as well. Each of these associations has their own code of ethics, their own
continuing education requirements for you to maintain certification with those associations. Hearing instrument specialists
have the opportunity to take an exam or attend
a particular program, which there's several of them, in order to become board certified as a hearing instrument specialist. This is why you commonly
see the letters BCHIS, for Board Certified Hearing
Instrument Specialists. Based on information from the NBC website, the certification essentially
shows to consumers that that instrument
specialist is upholding a higher level of
education and competency. So, these five differences aside, you have some great audiologists, and then you have some
not so great audiologists, and you have some great
hearing instrument specialists, and you have some not so great hearing instrument specialists. The important thing, though, is that you are informed about the differences between the two, so you can make a decision
on who you want to go see, and to entrust your
hearing healthcare with. If you would like to know more about your state's licensing requirements for audiologists and hearing
instrument specialists, you can go to your state
license or board website to find that information out. It is free to access. That's it for today's video. If you have any questions or comments, leave them in the comments section below. If you like the video, feel
free to give it a thumbs up, and if you want to, go
ahead and subscribe. I'll see you next time.
