Editor’s Note: We are excited to announce that audiologist and researcher, Barbara Weinstein, Ph.D., will be providing a new bi-monthly guest column for HHTM at Hearing Economics beginning on September 8th. The purpose of today’s post is to introduce Dr. Weinstein to our readers and describe the focus of her new column.
Barbara Weinstein Ph.D.
An expert on hearing loss in older adults, Barbara E. Weinstein, Ph.D. earned her doctorate from Columbia University and was appointed a faculty member upon being awarded her degree. The focus of her doctoral dissertation was quantification of subjective and objective isolation which inspired her to develop the Hearing Handicap Inventory with her mentor, Dr. Ira Ventry.
Dr. Weinstein’s research interests range from screening, quantification of psychosocial effects of hearing loss, senile dementia, and patient reported outcomes assessment.
Her passion is educating health professionals and the public about the trajectory of untreated age-related hearing loss and the importance of referral and management. The author of both editions of Geriatric Audiology, Dr. Weinstein has written numerous manuscripts on hearing loss in the elderly, speaking nationally and internationally on the topic.
Dr. Weinstein is the founding Executive Officer of Health Sciences Doctoral Programs at the Graduate Center, CUNY which included doctoral programs in public health, audiology, nursing sciences and physical therapy. She was the first Executive Officer the CUNY AuD program and is a Professor in the Doctor of Audiology program and the Ph.D. program in Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences at the Graduate Center, CUNY.
New Column
Robust measures of the patient experience are tied to effectiveness, adherence to provider recommendations and outcomes. Measures of the patient experience help stakeholders better understand barriers to entry and factors influencing health care decisions. Patient experience measures which tap into patient-centered care also relate to how well patients manage their chronic conditions. Dr. Weinstein’s column will address quantifying the patient’s hearing health care experience and focusing on the role of these measures in clinical practice and its relevance to health economics.{{1}}[[1]]Health Economics: branch of economics concerned with issues related to efficiency, effectiveness, value and behavior in the production and consumption of health and health care[[1]]
Dr. Weinstein went on to describe the intent behind her new column:
“As part of the column I will address patient centered care technologies, the role of decision support tools in clinical practice, and the necessity for audiologists to become part of interdisciplinary teams helping to optimize doctor-patient communication so integral to the patient experience.”
“Finally, I will attempt to shed light on the patient as partner framework which holds that since our patients are living with their hearing loss, they are the experts on their experience and we should value and welcome their expertise.”
