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What Is The Difference Between An Audiologist And A Hearing Aid Fitter (HAF)?

 

There are a number of different hearing healthcare professionals available, but each has different education and training requirements. An audiologist is a legally recognised professional (by RCI – A government of India appointed statutory body) from whom the treatment for hearing loss is sought for.

Audiologist:

An audiologist is trained to diagnose, treat and monitor disorders of the hearing and balance system. They are trained in anatomy and physiology, amplification devices, cochlear implants, electrophysiology, acoustics, psychophysics and auditory rehabilitation. Doctors of Audiology complete, at a minimum, an undergraduate and doctoral level degree in audiology, as well as a supervised externship prior to RCI licencing them for national certification as a professional in hearing Aid Dispensing and fitting. This usually requires 4 &1/2 – 7 years of post-secondary education.

The graduate school years focus on the medical, diagnostic and rehabilitative aspects of hearing loss, hearing aids and the vestibular system. Continuing education requirements must be met in order for an audiologist to maintain RCI certification. For individuals with hearing loss, auditory issues or balance problems, an audiologist is the most qualified professional to assist with diagnosis and treatment.

A Hearing Aid Fitter (HAF):

HAF is most commonly either an engineer or computer diploma holder self-appointed or appointed by the distributing company to do the hearing aid fitting mainly with idea of marketing as verses an Audiologist who is medically qualified to super specialise in Hearing Aid Dispensing. To better understand which professional is best for you, it’s important to distinguish the differences between the two.

Hearing Aid Fitter (HAF): A hearing aid Fitter has NO license to perform audiometric testing or to dispense and fit hearing aids. They have NO medical qualification to understand human body and its functions. As off in India there is no provision for HAF to obtain a license from official government agency like RCI. Hearing aid fitters are able to fit (based on the knowledge of software of the company that they represent – either one or rarely more than one company)and repair hearing aids, however, they cannot diagnose or evaluate a hearing loss.