Change in Audiology License

 Legislation has recently passed which includes language to add hearing aid dispensing under the audiology license regulated by the Board of Healing Arts. This change will allow individuals who hold an Audiology license in Missouri to not only provide standard diagnostic and rehabilitative services, but also to fit and dispense amplification without the need for a separate Hearing Instrument Specialists license. There will be a fee change for the Audiology license in Missouri, but it will not exceed the previous total to hold both the Audiology and Hearing Instrument Specialists licenses. Please check back for updates to the Audiology license change and effective dates.

 ECHO Team in Missouri

An Early Childhood Hearing Outreach (ECHO) team has been developed in MO. The team will train Early Head Start and Parents as Teachers sites to utilize otoacoustic emissions (OAE) for early childhood (birth-three) hearing screening. The team will train the sites to utilize OAE using specific protocols for referral and follow-up. The goal is to reduce the variety of methods bring utilized for early childhood hearing screening, providing a standardized, objective method for screening. Other states participating in the ECHO project have seen an increase in appropriate referrals and a decrease in unnecessary referrals. If you are and audiologist interested in participating on this project, please contact me at helmska@slu.edu.

Audiology Committee Members

I am always looking for audiologists in the state who want a more involved role in MSHA. If this sounds like you, I would love to have you as a member of the Audiology Committee. Please contact me if you would like to be a member.