Course Abstract & Learning Objectives

This course dives into the intricate connections among cognition, hearing and aging. Join audiology and psychology expert Kathy Pichora-Fuller as she discusses how existing tools and knowledge can be used by audiologists to assess the connections between age-related hearing loss and typical aging in cognitive domains such as memory, attention, speed of processing and use of contextual information. Kathy highlights the pivotal role of audiologists in addressing the auditory needs of aging listeners, while also emphasizing the importance of integrated person-centered rehabilitative approaches that address the broader everyday functional effects of age-related changes in cognitive and sensory factors on the lives of older adults. Beyond the challenges and opportunities presented by the intersection of sensory and cognitive aging, Kathy stresses how audiologists can promote healthy aging so that older adult can be and do what they value.

  • Better understanding the connections among cognition, hearing, and aging.

  • Define healthy aging.

  • Recognize the role of audiologists in supporting patients to age well.

  • Identify and implement existing clinical tests and questionnaires that can be used to assess connections between auditory processing and aspects of cognition (memory, attention, speed of processing, use of context) that are key to listening in everyday life.

  • Look beyond audiologic results when developing an integrated person-centered rehabilitation plan for aging adults.

  • Enhance strategies for effective audiological rehabilitation that support the everyday functioning of aging adults.

How Do I Take This Course?

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Continuing Education

Instructor

Kathy Pichora-Fuller

Professor Emeritus

Kathy Pichora-Fuller is Professor Emerita in the Department of Psychology at the University of Toronto and Adjunct Professor in the Department of Gerontology at Simon Fraser University in Vancouver, Canada. For over three decades, she has been an inter-disciplinary ambassador between audiology and psychology. She has translated her research on auditory and cognitive aging to address the rehabilitative needs of older adults with age-related hearing and cognitive impairments, more recently focussing on social engagement and healthy aging. She has served as the audiology expert for the Canadian Longitudinal Study of Aging and the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging, and has contributed to the WHO World Reports on Hearing and on Aging and Health, as well as the 2022 World Alzheimer Report. She has served on the editorial board of Ear and Hearing for 18 years and was involved in the 2016 special issue on “Hearing Impairment and Cognitive Energy”, as well as special issues on stigma (2024) and IDEA (2022). She is Past President of the International Collegium of Rehabilitative Audiologists and represents ICRA on the WHO World Hearing Forum. She leads the Hearing in Later Life working group of the International Society of Audiology and represents the ISA on the WHO World Rehabilitation Alliance working group on primary care. She has won the International Award of the American Academy of Audiology and the Lifetime Achievement Award of Speech-Language and Audiology Canada. She is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences.