Dr. Patricia Gaffney - Developing and Standardizing Audiology Practice Standards

Dr. Patricia Gaffney is a professor at NOVA Southern University in Fort Lauderdale and the Director of the NSU United Kingdom Doctor of Audiology program. Her specialties are in vestibular diagnostics and treatment, teaching advanced vestibular course geriatric audiology and amplification. She is also a member of the AAA and previously served as the President of the Audiology Practice Standards Organization.

While there are professional guidelines that have been in place for decades, there were no practice standards in the industry until recently. The bottom line is well-established, but there is much less precedent for clear professional standards. If audiologists are to improve, they need goals and benchmarks to strive after. Fortunately, those standards are now being developed.

Dr. Patricia Gaffney once served as President for the Audiology Practice Standards Organization. The organization is filled with leaders in the industry, working together as they attempt to define practice standards across the board. So what are these standards and how can it influence the landscape of audiological practices?

Dr. Mark Syms speaks with Dr. Patricia Gaffney, a professor at NOVA Southern University in Fort Lauderdale, on this episode of ListenUp! to discuss audiology practice standards. They discuss what the Audiology Practice Standards Organization does and how they have defined their guidelines. They touch on Dr. Gaffney’s career, what the future holds for audiology practices, and the differences between guidelines and standards.