AUDIOMETRIC TESTING

audiometric testing in Spruce Grove

The Occupational Health and safety code part 16(noise) requires employers to ensure noise-exposed workers undergo audiometric testing. An audiometric technician must conduct the audiometric test.

The ear is a sensitive instrument and can be literally destroyed by disease, certain drugs, or noise. As audiometric technicians, noise-induced hearing loss is our primary concern. Noise is a leading health hazard in the workplace and a leading cause of all hearing loss.

So why might you need audiometric testing? An example is a burst of high-intensity noise at work such as an explosion, which can cause sudden, permanent deafness. As well, the hearing loss from long-term industrial noise exposure is more insidious. It can cause hearing damage without the worker even being aware of it until it is too late. 

The ears do not bleed, there is no pain and frequently the noise does not seem particularly loud. Hearing conservation is not always easy to promote. The biggest challenge in hearing conservation is getting the worker to wear adequate hearing protection on a consistent basis. 

Our Technicians are responsible for :

  1. Educating workers
  2. Counseling at the time of test
  3. Categorizing the test results
  4. Referral to the physician
  5. Referral to the audiologist when indicated.
  6. Record keeping
  7. Maintaining the audiometric test data

Case history information is under the sole control of the physician, audiologist, or occupational health nurse designated by the employer.

Our Smart Tone Audiometer is referred to as a microprocessor and is prevalent for audiometric testing in Alberta. They are pure-tone audiometers in which signal presentation, frequency, and hearing level selection are completed by the audiometer. When the worker hears a tone, they press the button and the response is recorded. Based on the worker’s response, thresholds are calculated and then presented on a read-out in the numerical form at the end of each test. Most machines will indicate those thresholds that are questionable and should be re-tested.