Hearing Expo 2006 at UMaine May 4
Contact: For technical information contact: Amy Engler Booth, M.A., CCC-AClinical Audiologist/lecturer; 581-2009
For coverage information contact: Jen Jackson, Student/Media Liaison; 232-5961
ORONO — It is estimated nearly 100,000 Mainers have a hearing loss. Nationally that number is 22 to 28 million Americans, 37 percent of whom are over the age of 65. The most shocking statistic may be that only 20 percent of those with a hearing loss use a hearing aid.
University of Maine students are trying to fight the national trend by providing free hearing screenings and education for adults. On The evening of May 4, graduate students and faculty members from the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders will hold the 8th annual Hearing Expo. It will be an evening of education, prizes and fun. Not only are adults welcome to have their hearing screened for free, but they can also learn about what’s new in hearing aid technology, have their hearing aids checked and cleaned, learn better ways to communicate, and much more.
Amy Engler Booth, the program’s audiologist and the event’s organizer says Hearing Expo is not just for those with a hearing loss, but for people who have family members or friends with a hearing loss. Booth says, “it is for anyone who wishes to communicate better with others.”
Booth says while her students are all studying to become speech language pathologists (a field closely associated with audiology) they do a wonderful job fulfilling the role of audiologic rehabilitation specialists. The students begin planning weeks in advance, putting together poster presentations and researching topics such as tinnitus (ringing in the ears) and how much noise is too much. Some students, including Jody Lewia and Kate Hill, have spent their time learning the ins and outs of complicated computer programs like the APHAB, or Abbreviated Profile of Hearing Aid Benefit. On the night of the Expo, Lewia and Hill will use the program to help current hearing aid users determine whether their aids are helping them hear, and by how much.
One of the most exciting booths for students is “assistive listening devices.” These students have persuaded manufacturers to loan the latest gadgets with all the bells and whistles