David Kirkwood

A longtime observer of the hearing healthcare scene, David Kirkwood was editor-in-chief of The Hearing Journal from 1990 through 2010. Among the honors he received was a 2006 President’s Award from the American Academy of Audiology. Previously, he spent 15 years as editor and publisher of a weekly community newspaper in Scarsdale, NY. Before finding his way into journalism, he earned degrees in history from Cornell University (where he was an outstanding pinball player) and the University of California at Berkeley. When he isn’t blogging at Hearing Health & Technology Matters, David enjoys spending time with his wife, Annie, going to plays and movies in New York, traveling, and relaxing in their vacation place in Mid-Coast Maine. His other avocations include rooting for the Yankees and throwing tennis balls for his puli, Isaac.

HIA promotes Bopp to executive director

WASHINGTON, DC—Andy Bopp has been promoted to the position of executive director of the Hearing Industries Association (HIA). Carole Rogin, who will remain president of HIA, said that Bopp, who has been director of government relations for the past decade, will assume responsibility for HIA’s regulatory and statistical programs and other special member initiatives. In announcing the appointment, Rogin said,

GN adds a major Danish hearing aid dispensing company to its portfolio

COPENHAGEN—The latest development in a continuing trend in the hearing aid industry toward manufacturer control of the retail sector took place today (October 1) when GN Store Nord A/S acquired a major Danish hearing aid dispensing network, Dansk Hørecenter. GN, owner of GN ReSound, made the purchase through its Beltone subsidiary. The price was not disclosed. According to GN’s announcement,

ASHA campaign alerts Americans to early signs of hearing and speech problems

ROCKVILLE, MD—The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) has launched a nationwide campaign to raise awareness of the early warning signs of speech, language, and hearing issues. The initiative, dubbed Identify the Signs, was inspired by a survey of ASHA members that found that public lack of awareness of the signs of communications problems is the number one barrier to early

Trailblazers in cochlear implants receive Lasker-DeBakey Awards

NEW YORK—Three pioneering scientists who led the way to developing the cochlear implant received the prestigious Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award at ceremonies held here on September 20. The 2013 honorees are Graeme M. Clark, Ingeborg Hochmair, and Blake S. Wilson, whose work contributed so much to enabling profoundly deaf people to hear. In announcing the award winners, the Albert

Student expelled from college nursing program because of hearing loss prevails in court

SPRINGFIELD, MO—Michael Argenyi is not the only would-be health care provider who took his college to court on charges that it had failed to accommodate his hearing loss as required by law. In Springfield, MO, Jessica Wells, who had been studying for an associate’s degree in nursing, sued Cox College of Nursing after it threw her out of the program

ADA promises “Transformative” convention

BONITA SPRINGS, FL—From the opening night reception in the exhibit hall on Thursday, November 7, through a quartet of Sunday morning workshops, the Academy of Doctors of Audiology (ADA) 2013 Convention is designed to offer members and other attendees four days of “Great Transformations [to] Take Your Practice from Ordinary to Extraordinary.” Held at the 26-acre Hyatt Regency Coconut Point

Hearing by design: A report on new ways to build outer ears for people without them

By Tom Parker Most people are used to seeing someone wearing custom earplugs or hearing aids, but only rarely do you see someone with no ears at all. This condition can be the result of an accident, but just as often people are born without outer ears, i.e., the exterior part of the ear known as the pinna. Apart from

Married people find it easier to hear—and hear over—their spouse’s voice

KINGSTON, ONTARIO–A research study published online August 28 in Psychological Science reports that middle-aged and older married couples find the familiar voice of their spouse easier to hear and understand in a background of speech than other, less familiar voices. The voice that a husband or wife has heard regularly for many years stands out relatively clearly against other voices

When Viking stars score, the Hearing Foundation wins

MINNEAPOLIS—If Adrian Peterson, the National Football League’s top running back, scores the 77th touchdown of his career this Sunday in the Minnesota Vikings’ opening game against the Detroit Lions, his team will make a $500 donation to the Starkey Hearing Foundation. The same is true if Minnesota’s All-Pro wide receiver Greg Jennings adds to his total of 53 touchdowns. Throughout

New film will help Alliance increase awareness and use of cochlear implants

By David H. Kirkwood McLEAN, VA–Only about 6% of the children and adults in the United States who are good candidates for cochlear implants have them, says Donna Sorkin. That’s why the American Cochlear Implant Alliance (ACI Alliance), where Sorkin is the executive director, is stepping up its efforts to increase awareness of and access to cochlear implants. The membership