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What does public health mean to audiology?

Themann CL

ASHA Audiol Connect 2016 Apr; :8-9

http://www.asha.org/uploadedFiles/2016-Audiology-Connections.pdf

20048316

What comes to mind when you hear the phrase "public health"? Clean water? Immunization programs? Health care for the underserved? ASHA wondered how audiologists perceive "public health," so we asked a question about it in the 2014 biennial audiology survey. Public health is about preventing disease and promoting health among individuals, families, communities, and entire populations. All health professions have a public health component (think about programs that encourage people to stop smoking, increase exercise, or get cancer screenings). But how much do audiologists know about the scope and necessity of public health in the context of audiology practice? A random sample of 4,000 audiologists received the 2014 survey, and 1,811 audiologists completed it. Of those, 737 answered the open-ended question, "What does the phrase 'public health issues and audiology' mean to you?" We used conventional content analysis to determine the key concepts in the answers. Respondents identified a range of public health concepts relevant to audiology.

Audiological testing; Public health; Hearing conservation; Hearing; Hearing loss prevention; Hearing protection; Hearing tests; Health care; Education; Protective equipment; Personal protection; Personal protective equipment; Protective measures; Behavior; Fall protection; Screening programs; Preventive medicine; Exposure levels; Risk factors; Noise; Noise pollution

20160411

Newsletter

2016

DART

American Speech-Language-Hearing Association Audiology Connections

OH