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College Hearing Screening

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Taylor and Emanuel (2013) conducted retrospective and prospective studies to assess the efficacy and offer suggestions to strengthen college hearing screening programs. Researchers assessed low return rates, addressed high ambient noise levels in therapy rooms, and considered the effects on results when excluding 6000 Hz. Retrospective records from 1999 to 2011 were analyzed at a university. A small percentage of students were referred for follow-up testing after failing their screening, yet only a third of the students returned for diagnostic testing. Students with hearing loss were not accurately identified due to the therapy rooms being poorly treated, resulting in unreliable findings. The prospective study included a smaller number of students who took part in a required screening and agreed to participate in a …show more content…

Program directors’ decision to only test frequencies at 1000, 2000, and 4000 Hz, while excluding 6000 Hz, will inevitably miss students with a hearing loss in higher frequencies. Assessing the efficacy of the hearing screening program led researchers to make recommendations for other universities to implement. Examples include, advocating the importance of follow-up to students to improve return rates, and having proper sound treatment to enhance screening results. Finally, adding 6000 Hz into the screening program may help to accurately identify students with early signs of high frequency hearing loss. In conclusion, the study was useful in acknowledging weaknesses such as assessing the low follow-up rates, noticing high levels of noise, and examining the impact on results when hearing screening programs choose to omit 6000 Hz. Recognizing the limitations of the hearing screening program allows for given recommendations to strengthen the efficacy of existing hearing screening

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