The Ten Most Disturbing Subjects in the Audiological Profession (National and International)

The Ten Most Disturbing Subjects in the Audiological Profession (National and International)

Yesterday I was consulted by a colleague on the ten most disturbing topics of the profession today, which made me reflect on the subject and decide to write about it in the blogg and also to divide them into five at the national level and Five at an international level. The result of this reflection is the following:

The five most disturbing national issues (Costa Rica) in the present day audiological

1. Corruption
2. Public Procurement of the Costa Rican State
3. The Disunity of the Professional Guild in Audiology
4. The lack of Spaces for Audiology
5. Saturation of professionals and Intrusiveness

The Five Most Unsettling International Issues in Today's Audiology

1. The sale of hearing aids in non-specialized US institutions
2. Hearing evaluation in electronic devices without professional mediation
3. The Fusion of the big companies of the world market of the auditory health
4. The entry of large chains of massive sales of products in the audiological market
5. The disparate training of professionals in hearing health

The National Panorama

As for the national issues, the latest and oldest news, the usual, in popular culture there is a saying "small people, big hell" and Costa Rica is a small country, with few inhabitants and therefore also our guild It is, but ... the disunity that characterizes us does not recognize the only real enemy of professionals in audiology: La Deafness. The defense of this blogg of a union united in a strong professional association, in the heart of the College of Therapists, is a daily, continuous and necessary task. Without differences of commercial or personal interests, audiologists are mainly due to our profession and above all to the users of our services.

Corruption is a regrettably recurring issue, although the International Transparency Index does not point to Costa Rica as one of the most corrupt or corrupt countries in Latin America. It is nonetheless worrying that there are infiltrations of commercial interests In the public purchases and the manipulation of contests for favor of buddies and the frameworks that chew the system. Fortunately, International Transparency does not measure corruption rates by profession, because with ours we are sadly heading the list.

In relation to market saturation, lack of places and intrusism, issues that are intertwined, we have in our country two university training programs in Costa Rica, with three possible qualifications: Baccalaureate, Bachelor or Master in Audiology. As usual, due to the culture of the demoperfectocracy we enjoy, a great number of professionals continue to graduate, and it has not been thought or planned based on the needs of the country, neither the creation of sources of employment (on the contrary) or the Training is instilled at least in entrepreneurship to make up the irresponsibility of the training entities. As if that were not enough, the Professional Associations in conflict, do not agree, the regulatory body does not supervise the suitability of care centers or accreditation of professionals and this permissiveness favors the illegal exercise of Audiology, intrusism Of other health professionals in the activity of the audiologist, which in the end, further increase the available places of employment of audiologists.

The International Panorama

Not much more flattering is the international panorama, fortunately the science in constant progress, has brought improvements and accessibility to the Audiology services, however, you also can not throw the bells in the air, the technological media has put in the hands of vendors and Of the general public, the possibility of acquiring and adapting hearing aids and hearing evaluations in portable telephone applications or internet pages, which threatens to render an intervention of a hearing health professional seem unnecessary. This indiscriminate provision of accessible services but of doubtful quality will probably be self-regulated when it is the users themselves who realize the low quality of rehabilitation offered by sales of hearing aids over the Internet or in non-specialized premises. But note that there will be many frauds and defrauded that will not receive the necessary therapy.

With regard to the merger of large companies in the audiology market, it is clear that large groups are under pressure and must stop pretending as they did in the past, with a strategy that was never clear, large companies presented themselves Before the audiological community and the public in general, with different commercial names, and now to look bigger,