By LTC Lynn W. Henselman, Ph.D.
“When written in Chinese, the word crisis is composed of two characters. One represents danger and the other represents opportunity…”
– John F. Kennedy, speech, April 12, 1959
Military Audiology recently experienced an unfortunate turn of events with the canceling of the Military Audiology Short Course (MASC). For most of our membership, MASC has been our annual event for continuing education, networking, and meeting of the MAA membership. Remarkably, although lack of funding has squelched this important program, opportunities are flourishing for alternate means for professional growth and communication for our community. What’s more, the resilience of MAA members is keeping MAA’s goals alive.
As my tenure as President ends, I would like to give you a final update regarding MAA’s endeavors. So many of our members are contributing their energy and time to various MAA interests.
As many of you know, Dr. Paul Lacroix served as the MAA Newsletter editor and recently turned over the responsibilities to CPT Marjorie Grantham. Paul provided MAA with an exceptionally professional and informative product for several years. I personally enjoyed working with Paul and am grateful for his dedication to our organization. Without hesitation, CPT Marjorie Grantham volunteered for the vacant position of MAA Newsletter editor. CPT Grantham long ago established herself as a hard working officer and I know she will give MAA her best.
LtCol Theresa Schulz continues to dedicate herself to military audiology by representing MAA’s interest for the Specialty Recognition in Occupational Audiology. LtCol Schulz indicates that there is still work to be done as a result of American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s disapproval of the application, but we are determined to gain approval and our efforts continue. In addition, COL Danielson and LtCol Schulz provide tremendous support to MAA serving as our representatives to the Council for the Accreditation of Occupational Hearing Conservation.
The Audiology Awareness Campaign (AAC) remains a viable crusade. Our representative, LTC(P) Nancy Vause is, as always, a dynamic force on the AAC Executive Board. Their Web site is an excellent source of information for the layperson, and also assists hearing healthcare providers with technical concerns via the question and answer forum. It’s definitely a Web site to bookmark.
In MAA’s effort to promote hearing conservation among the younger generation, several Operation “Be Aware of Noise Generation” (BANG) teams are proliferating across the country. MAA members and audiologists at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base and the San Antonio, TX and Washington, DC military audiology communities are at various stages in their Operation BANG programs and will soon receive funding from MAA.
During last year’s MAA membership meeting, you voiced support for the Au.D. Distance Learning Initiative and indicated that a portion of our budget should be dedicated to this effort. We are currently developing the best way, short term, to support MAA members as they pursue the Au.D. We are considering assisting MAA members with some portion of their payment for the application fee for an Au.D. program. We have not worked out all the details of this proposal, but we will announce the plan as soon as we have researched all our options.
As I alluded to earlier in my article, communication among military audiologists will be a key factor in keeping MAA and military audiologists updated on professional issues this year. Capt Rob Pluta spearheaded this effort through his development of the MAA Web site and creation of the discussion forum (discussion forum deactivated until further notice). Rob’s creativity, dedication, and responsiveness constantly amaze me as he serves as the webmaster. He has been a delight to work with and deserves our gratitude. The Web site continues to expand and soon it will serve as the central Web site for military audiologists to present information and share ideas. I encourage all of you to monitor this Web site for updates on important military audiology issues.
Finally, as I leave the Executive Board of MAA, I would like to thank the members of MAA for your spirited support and commitment to MAA over the years. I also want to thank the present and former MAA Executive Council members for their energy, inspiration, and mentoring, during my opportunity to serve military audiology.