2018 - Big Health Meets Hearing Healthcare: Adapting your practice to meet challenges of OTC hearing aids and multinational healthcare organizations
Anyone who has been paying attention knows that the field of Hearing Healthcare is changing at a rapid rate. Evidence of this occurred last summer when President Donald Trump signed the Over the Counter (OTC) Hearing Aid Act (part of the FDA Re-authorization Act of 2017) into law, which was aimed to allow patients to purchase Hearing Aids over the counter at their corner pharmacy, or more likely, at their closest national pharmacy retail center. This highlights 2 significant changes to our field; 1) the ability of patients to purchase hearing aids from professionals untrained in hearing loss or its treatments, and 2) the influence of Big Health in your local market. While there is a 3 year (now 2 year) period before the final rules go into effect, it is clear that significant changes are coming to your practice. Are you ready to meet these challenges?
This year’s topic is focused on providing you tools to meet the challenge brought on by Big Health entering the Hearing Healthcare marketplace. We have invited excellent speakers who will teach you about OTC hearing aids, Hearing Healthcare delivery in a multinational Healthcare Organization, and the challenges these pose to independent practitioners. You will learn specific techniques that you can use in your practices to meet these challenges including unbundling, diversification of your services, and ways to establish collaborations with other healthcare professionals.
As always, we will also have a session on Hearing Research presented by leading hearing scientists who will describe their work in outer hair cell assessments, the benefits of nicotine on auditory processing, and the use of AI on hearing aid technology. Participants will also be able to gain first-hand experience with the latest hearing aid technologies through the breakout sessions where the attendees can listen to these technologies and make their own A/B comparisons.
Mark A. Parker PhD, Tufts University School of Medicine
Carolina Abdala PhD, University of Southern California
Raju Metherate PhD, University of California at Irvine
Fan-Gang Zeng PhD, University of California at Irvine
Stephanie J. Sjoblad AuD, University of North Carolina
Bre Lynn Myers PhD AuD, Salus University
Sarah A. Sydlowski PhD AuD, Cleveland Clinic
Steven B. Levine, MD, dB Diagnostic Systems
Brian Taylor AuD, Fuel Medical Group
Laura Chenier AuD, Cochlear Corporation
Aaron Jones AuD, Unitron USA
Dan Quall MA, Fuel Medical Group
Schedule
This is the tentative schedule for the 2018 Palm Springs Hearing Seminars. There may be minor changes to the program, but the overall topic will remain as described. Those lectures that the speakers have agreed to share are available by clicking the links below, or by contacting them directly.
Friday November 30, 2018
7:00-8:00 Registration
Session I. Hearing Science
8:00-9:00: Abdala- Changing Status and Enhanced Utility of OAEs: Differential diagnosis and to learn about (not just detect) sensory hearing loss ( * )
9:00-10:00: Metherate- Nicotine Enhances Auditory Processing: Yes, yet another benefit of nicotine
10:00-11:00: Zeng- Artificial Intelligence and Hearing Aids ( * )
Session II. Challenges in Clinical Practice
12:00-1:00: Sydlowski- Disruptive Innovation Doesn’t Have to Disrupt your Practice: Preparing pre-OTC ( * )
1:00-2:00: Parker- Providing Comprehensive Hearing Healthcare: Lessons from a multinational healthcare organization ( * )
2:00-3:00: Myers- Private Practice in the Age of Big Health
Session III. Clinical Practice Applications
3:00-4:00: Sjoblad - Unbundling and Itemization of Hearing Care Services Part I ( * )
4:00-5:00: Sjoblad - Unbundling and Itemization of Hearing Care Services Part II ( * )
5:00-6:00: Parker, Sydlowski, Myers- Fireside Chat
6:00-8:00: Wine and Cheese Social: All are invited!
Saturday December 1, 2018
7:00-8:00: Registration
Session IV. Establishing Interprofessional Relationships
8:00-9:00: Taylor- Navigating the Risks & Rewards of Self-Fitting Hearing Aids and Self-Directed Care ( * )
9:00-10:00: Quall - Establishing Collaborations with Medical Professionals ( * )
10:00-11:00: Sydlowski- Your Best Might Not Be Enough: Cochlear implant update ( * )
Session V. Advances in Hearing Technology
12:00-1:00: Chenier- Bone Anchored Hearing Aids ( * )
1:00-2:00: Parker- Semi Implantable Hearing Aids ( * )
2:00-3:00: Levine-Hearing Healthcare Pro™ - Moving hearing testing and diagnosis out of the booth and into the clinic.
Session VI. Conventional Hearing Aid Technology Update
3:00-4:00: Jones- Evidence-based Hearing Instrument Recommendations ( * )
4:00-5:00: Parker- Hearing Aid Technology Breakout Session I ( * )
5:00-6:00: Parker- Hearing Aid Technology Breakout Session II ( * )