Specialist / Advanced Audiology Practitioner

Specialist / Advanced Audiology Practitioner A practicing healthcare practitioner, who contributes towards provision of a comprehensive Audiology Service.

Assists the Audiology Manager in the daily clinical work of the department and is responsible for managing their own workload without direct supervision.

In addition to audiological assessment, hearing aid fitting and re-evaluation clinics, adult audiology provide specialist vestibular clinics and a hearing therapy service. We work closely with our colleagues in ENT and Paediatric Audiology.

Applicants must have the ability to prioritise their time and work schedule effectively, be flexible, have excellent written and oral communication, ability to meet deadlines and be a team player within a multidisciplinary team, with a knowledge and acceptance of diverse populations.

The Audiology Practitioner must be registered with the AHCS.

Main duties of the job Rehabilitative care, diagnostic assessments of hearing, and care for adult hearing aid users, children over 5 years of age, and their carers/relatives.

Demonstrates effective communication and interpersonal skills with other professionals and service users, including patients, carers and relatives.

Takes part in contributing to service development and maintains professional standards.

Maintains patient and departmental records both written and electronic using computer databases and word processing.

Provides clinical assessments and hearing aid programming and provision using complex computer software and specific specialised hardware.

Assists in one or more of the specialist areas of Audiology service provision

About us We are seeking a highly motivated and enthusiastic individual to join us in our busy team of adult audiologists. Our work covers sites across East Lancashire in both hospital and community settings. The appointee will be responsible and accountable for their day to day clinical work.

Job responsibilities Clinical:

• Collaborates with the Audiology Manager in the provision of specific clinical work on a daily basis, ensuring an efficient and effective service within clinical governance guidelines.
• Maintains professional standards and protocols without supervision.
• Responsible for maintaining own workload, prioritising referrals, arranging follow up appointments agreed with patient.
• Contact with clients within hospital clinical settings, community clinical settings, patients own home and nursing homes on domiciliary visits.
• To perform and analyse diagnostic assessments of hearing on adults and children.
• Using air conduction headphones and bone conduction vibrator to obtain accurate hearing threshold levels (using masking stimuli where appropriate) and following BSA guidelines. Instructing the patient on what is required of them to perform the test including the use of tact and persuasion where barriers to understanding exist e.g., children with special needs, adults with learning disabilities, babies and the patient may be uncooperative. Requiring frequent use of keyboard, mouse and VDU whilst sitting in a restricted position.
• Perform middle ear analysis using tympanometry, including probe microphone insertion to determine the middle ear function; acoustic reflex testing and eustachian tube function tests as part of the test battery for further management of medical conditions.
• Perform examination of the ear using clinical Otoscope to identify healthy and abnormal ear conditions. Recognising contra-indications to performing further procedures and appropriate referral to other professionals (ENT, GP, Specialist ENT Nurse, other specialist audiologist) for management/treatment where required.
• Selection, Verification and Programming (subjective and objective) of hearing aids.
• Using assessment results to select and programme appropriate hearing aids using specific computer software and hardware tools.
• Assess patients individual, physical abilities, and social needs in choice of aid and programmes.
• Verify the hearing aid programming using subjective (free field and verbal assessment) and objective Real Ear Measurement or Real Ear to coupler Difference (on children) techniques involving insertion of probe tube microphone into the ear canal. Adjusting prescription of hearing aid as appropriate. Involves fine manual dexterity and care, requiring prolonged concentration.
• Provides comprehensive and complex rehabilitation and counselling:
• Instructing patient on effective use of aid, communicating realistic expectations, advice on the disabling effects of hearing loss. Using basic directive counselling and empathic skills to empower the patient in their rehabilitation and management of hearing loss.
• Formulating individualised care plans.
• Using effective communication and persuasion where a poor motivational attitude to hearing loss may exist and barriers to understanding and communication may include hearing loss, visual impairment (including deaf-blind clients), dementia and stroke patients with aphasia.
• Liaise with nursing and residential homes and give advice and presentations to staff and residents to ensure all hearing-impaired residents are given an informed and quality service in regard to their communication needs.
• Audit and outcome measures:
• Audit the benefit of hearing aid use and patient satisfaction using nationally recognised benefit profiles and questionnaires. Input the information into software packages.
• Using the outcome measures for further rehabilitation measures.
• Take part in clinical audit, and research & development of the activity of the service to improve patient services.
• To participate in the open access hearing aid repair sessions. This entails:
• Dealing with maintenance and replacement of faulty hearing aids, supply of batteries, re-tubing of ear moulds.
• Dealing with queries and problems presented by patients and carers and referring them to the appropriate professional if required.
• To provide this service to inpatients on wards and at outside clinics where transport of equipment to carry out these duties is required. Occasionally this will require working in less-than-ideal conditions.
• Modification of ear moulds for patients using appropriate equipment (with training) including dental drill, buffer/grinder and safety equipment, to ensure comfortable and acoustically viable fit.
• For adults and children with all types of hearing aid, requiring skill, dexterity and judgement when working to finer tolerances. Involves the use of noisy and dusty machinery for earmould modification.
• To take accurate and safe impressions of the ear:
• On adults and children of all ages and special needs clients.
• Taking impression of the ear following professional recommended procedures (BSA) by placing foam otostop into ear canal, then syringing impression material into the canal to form an accurate impression for processing by the earmould manufacturer.
• Determine the type, material and any modifications required for earmoulds, swim moulds and other types of earpieces required (e.g. ear defenders).
• To take a clinical lead in one or more of the following specialist areas being responsible for generating written, verbal and electronic reports to other professionals, communicating results, prognosis and further actions:
• Direct referral hearing aid clinic: taking accurate clinical history, otoscopic examination of the ears, performing diagnostic assessment and making a clinical decision on the appropriateness of hearing aids and assistive listening devices, formulating a patient management plan. Reporting findings to GP and other medical personnel as required for further management.
• Diagnostic Audiology on adults including: 1. Auditory Brainstem Response assessments using electrodes to detect stimuli from supra-aural/intra aural headphones and bone conductor, and using specific computer software and hardware. 2. Otoacoustic emissions to detect cochlear function using probe microphone and specific computer software and hardware. 3. Speech Audiometry, using taped speech lists and headphones to determine speech discrimination.
• Hearing aid fitting for more complex hearing loss client group.
• Tinnitus management clinics: patients referred from ENT and from existing client base for management of the sometimes-distressing condition of tinnitus awareness.

Assessment of patient using diagnostic tests, handicap questionnaire and tinnitus questionnaire.

Formulating a tinnitus therapy rehabilitation plan including use of sound generators, hearing aids and breathing techniques to aid tinnitus retraining therapy.

Using directive and patient centred counselling skills with emotionally distressed patients.

Arranging tinnitus clinics for individual consultation of up to 1 hour for each patient.

Refer for psychological management where appropriate. Following patient through the therapy for up to 3 years.

• Vestibular clinics: assessment of balance disorders using computer specific software and hardware to inform of Vestibular function. Includes Electronystagmography and caloric irrigation of the ears using water, air or iced water where appropriate.
• Grommet follow-up clinics: postoperative assessment of patients who have had grommet/ventilation tube inserted by surgical methods into tympanic membrane.

Recording any postoperative complications/parental concerns.
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