Osborne College of Audiology Offers 2019 Summer Workshop Series

Osborne College of Audiology Offers 2019 Summer Workshop Series

Two four-day workshops are scheduled at Salus University’s Osborne College of Audiology (OCA) as part of the annual Summer Workshops. This year, the sessions are held July 20 through July 23 and July 25 through July 28.

The goal of the summer workshops is to provide an update on a specific topic of study, to review clinical implications and provide hands-on training using new tools and techniques. Each workshop is taught by OCA faculty members who are distinguished in their area of expertise. American Academy of Audiology (AAA) and American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) continuing education credits will be offered pending approval. Workshops are open to current audiology practitioners, educators and clinicians. 

Attendees come from all around the world such as the United States; Canada; Austria; and India. Many participants are international clinicians who are already advancing their education through the University’s Doctor of Audiology (AuD) Online Bridge Program. 

“It is great fun to see them [participants] develop camaraderie and contribute to each other’s learning,” said Girjia Sundar, MPhil, PhD, CCC-A, FAAA, director of the Distance Education Programs in the OCA. “Our faculty is generous with their knowledge and expertise and over the years this interactive educational experience has contributed to the growth of our Distance Education alumni group. I would go so far as to say that these workshops add the extra element for practicing clinicians to transfer and apply the knowledge gained directly to their clinical work.” 

During the first session (July 20 through July 23) participants will learn about Hearing Assessment in Infants and Young Children through Objective Tests and Cochlear Implants which will be led by Ryan McCreery, MS, PhD, OCA adjunct professor in the Distance Program and Joshua Sevier, AuD, Cochlear Implant Program coordinator at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. 

Dr. McCreery is the director or Research and director of the Audibility, Perception, and Cognition Laboratory at Boys Town National Research Hospital in Omaha, Neb. As director or Research, he oversees the 24 research laboratories across five centers that comprise the Boys Town Research program. Dr. McCreery’s own research examines the factors that influence speech recognition in everyday listening environments for children who wear hearing aids. He received the 2013 Early Career Contributions to Research Award from the American Speech- Language- Hearing Association. 

Dr. Sevier is an audiologist and coordinator of the cochlear implant program at the University of Nebraska. He provides clinical services to patients and supervises clinical practice for students in the Doctor of Audiology program. Josh also co-teaches introduction to audiology, serves as a guest lecturer at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and collaborates with numerous organizations to ensure individuals with hearing loss have accessibility to services. He also conducts research in cochlear implants and works to develop and implement new methods of service via telepractice for patients living great distance from the cochlear implant center. Additionally, Dr. Sevier serves as a board member of the Nebraska Speech-Language-Hearing Association and is also co-chair of legislative affairs committee for the organization. 

In the second session (July 25 through July 28), participants will learn about Hearing Conservation in Music and Industry. This will be led by Michael Santucci, AuD; Brian Fligor, MS, ScD, OCA adjunct professor; and Laura Sinnott, AuD.

Dr. Santucci is the founder and president of Sensaphonics Hearing Conservation, Inc., based in Chicago, Ill. As a doctor of audiology and ardent music lover, Dr. Santucci has made it his life’s work to help preserve the sense of hearing for those whose professions involve exposure to high sound pressure levels. To raise awareness of the damaging effects of loud sound exposure on hearing health, he guest lectures regularly at institutions like Columbia School of Audio Engineering; Northwestern University; University of Chicago; the American Academy of Audiology; the Audio Engineering Society; the U.S. Airforce; the GRAMMY® organization (NARAS); American Academy of Dispensing Audiologists; and others. Dr. Santucci also works with the Audio Engineering Society (AES), where he is vice chair of the Technical Committee on Hearing and Hearing Loss Prevention. He continues his career-focused work on hearing conservation through Sensaphonics, developing and manufacturing innovative new products, operating a Musicians Hearing Clinic, mentoring audiologists, and sharing his unique knowledge with others. 

Dr. Fligor has been the chief audiology officer of Lantos Technologies, Inc., since January 2014. At Lantos, Dr. Fligor directs the Clinical Studies on the AURA System and drives product development for a wide range of applications. He was the director of Diagnostic Audiology at Boston Children’s Hospital and assistant professor at Harvard Medical School. Renowned for his research in hearing loss prevention from noise, music and invasive medical treatments, he has extensive experience fitting hearing aids, ear plugs and monitors for children, adults and musicians.

Dr. Sinnott is a long-time audio post-production engineer, and recently expanded her expertise into hearing health as a Doctor of Audiology. She is the audiologist at Sensaphonics, a Chicago-based musician’s hearing clinic and custom in-ear monitor manufacturer. She continues to sound design film and video projects, and is an adjunct instructor at the New York University (NYU) Music Technology Department. 

Workshop class sizes are limited and advance registration is highly recommended.