Index
Intro
Audiologists diagnose, evaluate and treat individuals with peripheral and central hearing loss, tinnitus and balance problems. Speech-language pathologists diagnose, assess and treat human communication disorders including speech, fluency, language, voice and swallowing disorders. Audiologists and speech-language pathologists are employed in hospitals, community and public health centres, extended care facilities, day clinics, rehabilitation centres and educational institutions, or may work in private practice. Audiologists and speech-language pathologists who are supervisors are included in this unit group.
Progression into management positions, such as chief audiologist or director of speech-language pathology, is possible with experience.
Main Duties
Audiologists perform some or all of the following duties:
- Develop and administer audiometric tests and examinations using specialized instruments and electronic equipment to diagnose and evaluate the degree and type of patients’ hearing impairment
- Plan and implement habilitation/rehabilitation programs for patients, including selection, fitting and adjustment of amplification devices, such as hearing aids, and teaching speech (lip) reading
- Provide information to patients and families regarding the nature, extent, impact and implications of hearing loss and treatment
- Establish personalized care plans working as a member of an interdisciplinary team
- Conduct research related to hearing and hearing disorders
- May instruct and supervise audiometric technicians, students and other health care personnel.
Speech-language pathologists perform some or all of the following duties:
- Administer tests and examinations and observe patients to diagnose and evaluate speech, voice, resonance, language, cognitive-linguistic and swallowing disorders
- Develop, plan and implement remedial programs to correct speech, voice, language, resonance, cognitive-linguistic and swallowing disorders
- Establish group and personalized care plans working as a member of an interdisciplinary team
- Provide advice and educational services to patients and families regarding communication and swallowing disorders
- Conduct research on speech and other communication disorders and on the development and design of diagnostic procedures and devices
- May instruct and supervise communicative disorders assistants, students and other health care personnel.
Employment Requirements
- Audiologists require a master’s degree in audiology.
- Speech-language pathologists require a master’s degree in speech-language pathology.
- Registration with a regulatory body is required for audiologists and speech-language pathologists in New Brunswick, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.
- Membership in the national association, Canadian Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists, is usually required.
- In some jurisdictions, audiologists may be required to obtain a separate licence to dispense hearing aids.
All Titles
- amplification audiologist
- audiologist
- audiologist, research
- audiology clinician
- audiology specialist
- certified audiologist
- certified hearing aid audiologist
- clinical audiologist
- community audiologist
- community speech-language pathologist
- diagnostic audiologist
- dispensing audiologist
- educational audiologist
- educational speech-language pathologist
- human communication disorders specialist
- industrial audiologist
- logopedist
- pathologist, speech
- pathologist, speech-language
- pediatric audiologist
- research audiologist
- specialist, audiology
- speech and hearing therapist
- speech pathologist
- speech therapist
- speech-language clinician
- speech-language pathologist
- speech-language pathologist clinician
- speech-language pathologist researcher
- therapist, speech
- therapist, speech and hearing
Exclusions
- Audiology and speech-language technical and assisting occupations (See 3237 Other technical occupations in therapy and assessment)
- Braille, lip-reading and sign language instructors (See 4215 Instructors of persons with disabilities)
- Managers in health care (0311)
- Phoniatricians (See 3111 Specialist physicians)