You know the email. The one with the invoice that makes your eyes water. Soon after, a specialist arrives with an expensive-looking Class 1 Sound Level Meter (SLM), performs a ritual of measurements, and leaves you with a certificate declaring your audiometric room “quiet enough”.… Read More »The Certification Charade: It’s Time to Fire Your Room Quietness Specialist
AbstractThis white paper advocates for the adoption of an Psychoacoustic Check as the preferred, scientifically robust, and practical method for verifying audiometric room quietness in South African occupational health settings. Traditional physical sound level measurements (e.g., SANS 10182) for room certification, particularly for mobile units,… Read More »The Psychoacoustic Check: A Preferred Method for Audiometric Room Quietness Certification in South African Occupational Health
Abstract This white paper critiques Note 1 of Section 15.1.2.3 in the South African National Standard SANS 10083:2023, a standard for occupational noise and hearing conservation. This recently added note implies that if the sound-blocking capability (attenuation) of an audiometric device cannot be easily… Read More »A Scientific Critique of SANS 10083:2023 Section 15.1.2.3 Note 1: Rectifying an Impediment to Advanced Hearing Conservation Practices
Abstract This white paper investigates the sound attenuation performance of typical single-walled, small audiometric test booths and an emerging boothless audiometry system (Kuduwave), specifically focusing on the 125-8000 Hz frequency range critical for comprehensive occupational hearing screening. Accurate hearing assessment in workplace environments is… Read More »Sound Attenuation in Audiometric Testing: A Review of Single-Walled Booths and Boothless Technologies for Occupational Hearing Screening
Abstract The accuracy of audiometric testing is fundamentally reliant on controlling ambient noise to prevent the masking of test stimuli. Various audiometric transducers, including supra-aural, circumaural, and insert earphones, as well as integrated headset systems, offer differing levels of passive sound attenuation. This white paper… Read More »A Comparative Analysis of Attenuation and Maximum Permissible Ambient Noise Levels for Audiometric Headsets
We all live by a code. In occupational health, that code is often written in Washington D.C. For years, our code was clear, etched in the stone of OSHA regulations. It was a good code, born from a desire to protect American workers. But… Read More »The Sound Booth is Dead: An American Occupational Health Journey from Compliance to Conquest
Abstract: This white paper investigates the determination of OSHA-compliant Maximum Permissible Ambient Noise Levels (MPANLs) for the Kuduwave audiometer when used with foam eartips. It reviews OSHA’s baseline MPANLs (29 CFR 1910.95 Appendix D, Table D-1) and the more current ANSI S3.1-1999 (R2018) standard,… Read More »Determining OSHA-Compliant Maximum Permissible Ambient Noise Levels (MPANLs) for the Kuduwave Audiometer (Utilizing Foam Eartips)
Let’s face it – the world isn’t exactly whispering these days. From honking traffic to Zoom calls, playlist overload to barking dogs, life is loud. Really loud. And in all that noise, one thing often gets forgotten: our hearing. But here’s the good news –… Read More »Sound Decisions: Why Audiology Matters More Than Ever in a Noisy World
The low, persistent hum of an old school generator was a stark contrast to the excited chatter of children outside a makeshift classroom. For Dr. Anya Sharma, an audiologist with a vision stretching far beyond city clinic walls, this was the frontline. Her mission: bring… Read More »Hearing Hoops: Dr. Anya Sharma’s Journey to Bring Audiometric Precision to the Underserved
Dr. Eleanor Vance was a bastion of audiological tradition. For over thirty years, her clinic, “Sound Perspectives,” thrived, built on meticulous care and an unwavering adherence to established protocols. Central to those protocols, almost a sacred space, was the sound-treated audiometric booth. To Eleanor, it… Read More »The Conversion of Dr. Vance: How Rigorous Science Liberated an Audiologist from the Booth