Action | Performance of cerumen management by audiologists |
Stage | Emergency/NOIRA |
Comment Period | Ended on 2/25/2015 |
As an audiology licensee in the Commonwealth of Virginia for over thirty-six years, I commend the Board for its ongoing service to audiologists of Virginia and to the citizens of the Commonwealth that we jointly serve. I have provided audiology services in a variety of locations across central Virginia, including academic medicine (VCU Hospitals), inpatient/outpatient rehabilitation (Sheltering Arms Hospital), ENT private practice, and most recently, my own audiology private practice. Access to the ear canal (and professional management of all aspects of complications that interfere with that) is the cornerstone of literally everything an audiologist does professionally. Many aspects of the Emergency Regulations for Cerumen Management, in their current form, fail to recognize and respect this reality. Unlike the regulations promulgated by other state boards of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology across these United States, the Virginia Emergency Regulations for Cerumen Management are unusually and unnecessarily restrictive. Specifically:
Increasing numbers of citizens are home bound and cannot be easily transported to outpatient ENT practices because of their debilitated health and limited mobility. The Emergency Regulations infer that audiologists who travel to such communities may no longer provide careful cerumen management in the safety of their home communities. These patients will have to wait weeks for physician appointments and waste hours of time waiting their turn for treatment at the physician office—or will never receive treatment. 18VAC30-20-241.c
The American Academy of Audiology, the Academy of Doctors of Audiology, the American Speech Hearing Language Association and the Speech Hearing Association of Virginia all affirm cerumen management to be a part of the Audiologist Scope of Practice. Access to the ear canal (and professional management of all aspects of complications that interfere with that) is the cornerstone of literally everything we do professionally. I urge the Board of Audiology and Speech Language Pathology to immediately revise the Emergency Regulations to be less restrictive to audiologists performing safe cerumen management