Audiology and oral health professional students: An interprofessional education collaboration.

OBJECTIVES: Audiology knowledge is important for oral health professionals because patients may present with hearing loss or temporomandibular joint dysfunction with referred pain to the ear. Additionally, their occupational environment may negatively affect their own hearing. An interprofessional learning experience for dental (DDS), dental hygiene (DH), and audiology students was created to increase DDS and DH students' knowledge of the audiology profession, risks to their own hearing, and communication with hearing-impaired patients. This study's purpose was to evaluate this new educational experience. METHODS: In 2018, audiology students presented information to DH and DDS students about audiology and offered optional supervised hearing screenings. DDS and DH students were surveyed to assess their self-rated knowledge level on audiology topics (e.g., audiology profession, hearing assessment, noise-induced hearing loss, and communicating with hearing impaired patients) before and after the educational sessions, as well as to evaluate their learning experience. Audiology students received didactic and hands-on instruction by DDS and DH students and faculty on performing a head and neck exam and making appropriate referrals. RESULTS: The response rate was 48% (n = 57). Students' reported knowledge on all topics significantly improved (P < 0.05) after the educational program. The majority, 86%, agreed that this experience should be added to the curriculum, and 92% reported it increased their understanding of the importance of collaborating with other health professionals. CONCLUSIONS: This experience increased students' knowledge of the audiology profession and understanding of hearing loss, while also increasing their appreciation of interprofessional education.

Collaborative Educational Experiences of Dental Hygiene and Audiology Students.

Purpose: An innovative, collaborative interprofessional experience for dental hygiene and audiology students that included hearing assessments and a class lecture/discussion session was developed and implemented at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the objectives were met for the initial educational experience and to identify areas for improvement.Methods: Audiology students, under faculty supervision, provided hearing screenings for 33 senior dental hygiene (DH) students and 4 graduate (DHE) students. In a subsequent didactic session for the DH and DHE students, an audiology doctoral student presented on the following topics: overview of the audiology profession, interprofessional collaboration with audiologists, principles of noise-induced hearing loss, protective measures for hearing health, and techniques for communicating with patients with hearing loss. Class discussion followed the lecture presentation. Surveys on the screening and education session were completed by the students and changes in their perception of knowledge were assessed.Results: Nearly half (49%) of the students indicated that this was their first hearing assessment. The vast majority (97-100%) agreed or strongly agreed that the experience was well-organized, contained important information for dental practice, and increased their understanding of the importance of collaboration and their comfort level in working with audiologists. Nearly all of the students (94%) recommended this experience be included in future curriculum. Significant changes were reported in students' knowledge of hearing assessments, noise induced hearing loss, and communication with patients with hearing loss (Wilcoxon Signed Rank Test, p < 0.05).Conclusion: The educational objectives of this initial interprofessional collaborative experience were met. Participants reported that the didactic and experiential education was a valuable learning experience and it increased their knowledge about the audiology profession and hearing health for themselves and their patients.