October is National Audiology Awareness Month. What does that mean? What can you do? How can you help spread awareness?
Do a Google search, and you’ll find half a dozen calls to action from a variety of different hearing education resources. The American Academy of Audiology, for example, asks hearing professionals to take charge locally and dedicate time during October 1-5 (“Public Awareness Week”) to “rally with your colleagues,” while Cochlear Americas seeks stories from the experts, hoping to inspire and teach.
Healthy Hearing, on the other hand, lays out the facts for the non-professional. They highlight the importance of not only hearing tests, but the importance of audiology assessments:
“Audiologists have a valuable and varied role in treating the hearing health of people of all ages, from the very young to the very old. They not only perform hearing evaluations and fit hearing aids, but also treat noise induced hearing loss, ear infections, trauma and damage to inner ear and eardrum due to illness or ototoxic medications.”
In line with Healthy Hearing, the NIDCD has a dedicated website to help inform the consumer, especially concerning adolescent hearing loss. This is a great resource for parents and teachers.
Finally, REM has some tips for how you can help with National Audiology Awareness Month:
- Spread the news about hearing loss prevention, which is a big part of any audiologist’s job.
- Find your favorite resources. In addition to the websites listed above, REM’s own blog — covering a variety of topics over the course of several years — might prove helpful.
- Encourage ear protection when exposed to loud noises.
- Get an app that monitors noise levels in the world around you.
- Realize that everyone over 55 deserves a hearing assessment*.
There’s lots you can do to help this coming October!