This Week in Hearing

In this special edition of This Week in Hearing, Dr. Tom Tedeschi breaks down the FDA's draft proposal for Over The Counter (OTC) hearing aids. The presentation and subsequent panel discussion was part of the Academy of Doctors of Audiology, AuDacity 2021 conference in Portland, Oregon.

We would like to thank Dr. Tedeschi and ADA for allowing us to publish this special edition for our audience.

Brandon Sawalich, President and CEO of Starkey, returns to discuss the recently released FDA proposed rule for Over The Counter (OTC) hearing aids, as well as the new Medicare Hearing Benefit currently under consideration in Congress as part of a larger spending package. In its current form, the Medicare benefit includes a provision to provide hearing aid coverage for those with severe hearing loss every 5 years.   

The pair discuss the implications of both the draft OTC rule, as well as the Medicare benefit, on patients, providers and the overall industry.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter:

In this week's technology spotlight. Dr. Bob Traynor speaks with Sandra Porps, Au.D., Head of Audiology for MDHearing. The pair discuss the company's new QuietTV wireless headset - a device designed to address a common complaint encountered in the audiology clinic: difficulty hearing television.

The new QuietTV Wireless Headphones are said to utilize MDHearing’s latest technology to enhance speech and reduce background noise – improving the TV listening experience and making it easier to understand the dialogue.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter:

https://www.linkedin.com/company/this-week-in-hearing/  

https://twitter.com/WeekinHearing

In this week's episode, Dave Kemp interviews Delain Wright of Intricon - a company that has been a supplier to the hearing aid industry for decades.   

In recent years, Intricon has shifted focus to the value segment of the hearing aid market, which has led to partnerships with UnitedHealthcare in 2012 with hihealthinnovations, and earVenture - a joint venture between Intricon and the Academy of Doctors of Audiology in 2015. The company currently supplies hearing aids to a number of direct to consumer companies.  

In this episode, Dave and Delain discuss the changing landscape of the hearing industry, implications of the recently released draft regulations for Over The Counter (OTC) hearing aids, and development of Intricon's self-fit hearing aid technology.  

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter: 

The practice of audiology is rapidly changing. It’s simply not enough to passively wait in your clinic for patients to show up looking for help; audiologists must become actively involved in providing care in places beyond the four walls of their clinic.   

One of the pioneers in the practice of interventional audiology is Lori Zitelli, AuD of the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.  

In this episode of This Week in Hearing, we ask Lori how she and her team spearheaded a program that puts non-custom amplifiers on the ears of individuals seeking services in other departments inside UPMC. Additionally, Lori shares her experiences using tele-care to fine-tune and adjustment hearing aids; a topic, based on her recent articles which can be found in the March 2021 20Q at AudiologyOnline, in which she has become an expert.

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter: 

Cerumen, better known as earwax, is one reason that hearing aids breakdown and a hinderance to the service delivery model as some providers refer patients to other professionals for cerumen removal.   

In this week’s edition of our webcast, Sahil Diwan, Co-Founder and CEO of SafKan Health, and Jackie Phillips, Vice President of Sales for SafKan Health, offer viewers with information on their novel and revolutionary product, Otoset, that removes many of the service barriers caused by earwax.  

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter: 

In this week's episode, Dave Kemp interviews Dr. Tim Trine, CEO of Noopl. His company was recently named 'Innovator of the Year' by an international panel of judges in the 2021 Hearing Technology Innovator Awards™ for it's innovative iPhone accessory that works to provide better hearing in background noise.   

The device, which clips onto the bottom of the iPhone, utilizes a three-mic array and beam steering to help focus in on speech more clearly. By using the head tracking technology built into the Airpods Pro and AirPods 3, it can detect which direction the user is facing to help better reduce background noise and enhance speech where the user is looking.  

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter: 

Brandon Sawalich, President and CEO of Starkey, sat down with Dr. Bob Traynor to discuss OTC hearing aids and other legislative initiatives impacting the hearing healthcare industry.   They discuss the new advocacy initiative, Listen Carefully, which was recently launched by Starkey with the aim of “bridging the conversation between hearing healthcare providers and lawmakers in Washington, D.C.” Interested viewers can visit ListenCarefully.org for more details.  

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter: 

George Cire is a true industry veteran with more than 40 years of experience, much of it involving implantable hearing devices. During his conversation with Brian Taylor, George reviews the three types of implantable hearing solutions and updates us on candidacy requirements, including the relatively new 60-60 criteria.   

Dr. Cire also gives us some compelling reasons why clinicians who are not part of a cochlear implant center can still be an integral part of implantable hearing device service and support, through the Cochlear Provider Network.  

Be sure to subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest episodes each week, and follow This Week in Hearing on LinkedIn and Twitter.

https://www.youtube.com/c/ThisWeekinHearing

https://www.linkedin.com/company/this-week-in-hearing/

Lindsey Jorgensen, AuD, PhD is a department chair, clinical director and assistant professor at the University of South Dakota. She sat down with Brian Taylor to discuss the tried and true prescriptive fitting method, used by hearing care professionals worldwide.

Their discussion focuses on the limitations of manufacturer’s first-fit prescriptive fitting methods, how manufacturers and clinicians both bring something different to the table that contributes to patient benefit and how the University of South Dakota Audiology Clinic customizes gain and output in their hearing aid fittings.