Importance of Clinical Experience in a Doctor of Audiology Program

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Audiology is a clinical profession, which means the highly trained Audiologist provides direct patient care in the identification, intervention, and management of hearing and balance disorders. To accomplish this, a solid foundation in the anatomy and physiology of the auditory and vestibular systems, psychoacoustics, hearing science, evaluation procedures, counseling, and intervention strategies, with the ability to apply theory to practice, is required. Audiology theory is obtained in academic coursework, by reading textbooks, as well as reading and performing research. The application of the theory occurs through course labs and clinical experience.

Audiology Theory

Students' progress through two phases of obtaining a solid foundation in the theory, knowing, and then understanding. Knowing is the first stage, which consists of recognizing the terms and being able to state the information. This is more superficial without truly being able to apply it. Students are able to recognize the use of the tenet during a lab or when working with a patient, but do not have the ability to recognize the rationale or purpose of it. Knowing theory is required to achieve understanding. If an individual does not know audiology concepts, there is nothing to understand. Understanding the principles allows students to integrate the information and realize their importance to identify the presenting problem, to develop an appropriate diagnostic battery, as well as to develop intervention strategies and management. The ideal means of achieving understanding of theory is to experience it in a clinical setting.

Application of Theory

Application of theory can occur via labs and during clinical experiences. Labs are incorporated into coursework, under controlled conditions, to assist students' progress from knowing to understanding. This can promote the generalization of theory. Clinical experiences permit students to experience the impact of individual differences and various pathologies on the concepts. The results lead to a deeper understanding of the tenets to develop appropriate patient management.

Clinical experiences also allow students to develop a better understanding of the patients they see and how to provide better hearing health care. Individuals often schedule a hearing evaluation to prove to their significant other, family, friends, or others that they do not have a hearing loss. These individuals often state they have no difficulty hearing or understanding speech, and indicate that people do not talk clearly, and the difficulties they experience are due to environmental sounds. The diagnostic evaluation typically identifies a hearing loss. When I obtain these results, it allows me to inform the individual that they have no difficulty hearing dogs bark, doors slam, or other environmental sounds. They have no difficulty understanding in a quiet room when one or two people are talking, and the other person is a few feet away, facing them. However, when they turn on the television, with the individual facing away, sitting a greater distance away, they start to struggle to understand. For example, did the person say "he" or "she," "seven" or "heaven," "sit" or "fit." At this point, the individual is usually nodding and smiling and asks what occurs. I tell the individual that the difficulty is not due to the television, the person facing the opposite direction, or the distance between the two. It is due to their hearing loss. There is no better experience than taking an individual from denial to acceptance of their hearing loss, resulting in them recognizing the need for a hearing aid to overcome the difficulties.

Clinical Experience at CU-Bloomsburg's Doctor of Audiology Program

The Doctor of Audiology Program at Commonwealth University-Bloomsburg recognizes the importance of knowing, understanding, and applying theory. To promote this model, students initiate their clinic experience in the first semester of the program under close supervision. This allows students to integrate this process into their education and training, which is a powerful tool in becoming high-quality clinicians. The knowing, understanding, and application process becomes part of the learning model that allows students to think and solve difficult and complex cases when experienced clinically. The model also results in deeper classroom discussions and promotes the understanding of advanced concepts. The knowing, understanding, and application method prepares students to meet the challenges they will experience performing the duties and responsibilities as an Audiologist.

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