Among the professionals you may come into contact with are audiologists, teachers of the deaf, otologists, otolaryngologists, cochlear implant surgeons and speech-language pathogists (SLPs).
Audiologists have master's or doctoral degrees in audiology and are certified by the American Speech Hearing Association (ASHA). In addition, audiologists are licensed by the State Board of Healing Arts. When selecting an audiologist for your child, it is best to find one who works primarily with children. Audiologists are aware of the many varieties of hearing aids available, and can guide you to the correct hearing aids for your child. Your audiologist will also periodically make new ear molds for your child as your child's ears grow in size and allow for feedback to occur.
Speech-language pathologists work with your child on speech and language.Select a speech-langauge pathologist who has experience in working with hard of hearing and deaf children.
You can contact ASHA or the Missouri Speech-Language-Hearing Association (800) 233-1234 for referrals to speech-language pathologists and audiologists in your area.
Otolaryngologists and otologists can check your child's ear structure to determine if there are any concerns and to determine if there are any surgical or other interventions that can be done to correct your child's hearing loss.
There is no board certification in cochlear implant surgery, but a cochlear implant surgeon will likely have extensive experience in cochlear implant surgery and will have received special training in performing this surgery. Some surgeons may do only one brand of cochlear implant, others do two or three brands. Do not hesitate to ask your cochlear implant surgeon questions during your child's reviewuation and make sure you pick a surgeon you feel comfortable with.
Teachers of the deaf have special training in working with deaf children. A teacher of the deaf often specializes in one or more approaches to education of the deaf - namely: bilingual-bicultural (ASL), cued speech, Total Communication (SEE), auditory-oral, or auditory-verbal. Some teachers of the deaf also specialize in working with preschool age children, others may concentrate on grade school age or older deaf children. You should check that the teacher of the deaf who works with your child has both knowledge and experience in the particular method your child uses and skill and experience in working with children of your child's age.
A certified-auditory verbal therapist is a teacher of the deaf, audiologist, or speech-language-pathologist who has gone through additional training in the auditory-verbal approach and has passed a certification examination offered by Auditory-Verbal International.
While the vast majority of professionals in the field of deafness are competent and caring, there are also some who are incompetent and have no business working with deaf children. Trust your gut instincts - if you feel the professional, be it surgeon, audiologist, teacher of the deaf, or SLP working with your child is not best for your child, you are probably right.