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10/10/2015  |   8:30 AM - 9:45 AM   |  Andrew Foster Auditorium

A Program to Educate and Train Audiometry Technicians in Nicaragua and the Development of a Sustainable Audiology Humanitarian Program

Mayflower Medical Outreach (MMO) is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) non-governmental organization whose mission is to strengthen hearing health and deaf education in Nicaragua. MMO currently operates an audiology clinic, ENT clinic, and deaf boarding school in the rural mountain town of Jinotega, Nicaragua. A successful humanitarian program has been in operation there since 1999. Using the success of the Jinotega clinic as a foundation, MMO and the Nicaraguan Ministry of Health are working together to establish 2 additional clinics in different regions of the country. Key to the success of these clinics are personnel who can provide accurate audiometric evaluations; however, the country has only one university trained audiologist and lacks a university training program. In an effort to educate and train qualified personnel to operate future clinics and create a sustainable audiology program, MMO has created an audiometric technician training program. An overview of key factors that have contributed to the success and sustainability of MMO's programs will be presented. The goals of the MMO audiometric technician training program and means of accomplishment will be described. Finally, challenges encountered in the implementation of the training program and possible future directions will be discussed.

• List key factors that have contributed to the success and sustainability of MMO’s programs.
• Explain the goals and methods of the MMO technician training program.
• Discuss possible challenges in implementing a technician training program.

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Mark Sanders (POC,Primary Presenter,Co-Author), Mayflower Medical Outreach, mcs1001@gmail.com;
Mark Sanders, Au.D., is an audiologist at Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary in Boston, MA. He graduated from Arizona State University in 2012 after completing his fourth-year audiology externship at Tripler Army Medical Center in Honolulu, HI. Mark has been participating in humanitarian audiology work since 2009 and began working with Mayflower Medical Outreach (MMO) in 2012. His efforts with MMO have been focused on the creation and implementation of an audiology technician training program in Nicaragua.