The Audiologist Informer

RCA Accessories today announced its plans to enter the over-the-counter (OTC) hearing aid market with an assortment of RCA OTC Hearing Aids scheduled for launch on May 8. The website appears to show very basic technology in the form of two rechargeable RIC and earbud-type devices with the latter offered at $300/set.

This cross-sectional study evaluated the ability of ChatGPT to provide quality and empathetic responses compared to physician responses, with healthcare professionals rating the two for empathy and best answers in a social media forum. Of the 195 questions and responses, evaluators preferred chatbot responses to physician responses in 78.6%. Mean physician responses tended to be much shorter than chatbot responses (52 words vs 211 words), and the authors suggest using a chatbot to draft responses with physicians editing them.

Children with MMHL are already at increased developmental risk as early as preschool. They are more likely to have problems with attention and verbal comprehension than children with normal hearing, and this condition is not compensated with increasing age during the preschool years. The results suggest a possible relationship between the risk of cognitive deficit and divergence of auditory processing.

The Scope of Practice and Standards of Practice for Audiology, updated to reflect the evolving clinical practice in audiology, include screening and identification, assessment and diagnosis, treatment and management of auditory and vestibular loss, hearing conservation, neurophysiological monitoring, public health, and research and academic activities.