Practical Training for China's First Audiology UndergraduatesChina's first group of audiology graduates went to the Tongren Hospital in Beijing Saturday morning to study an artificial cochlea implant operation on China's National Ear Care Day.To be graduated from the Capital Medical Sciences University soon, the six students will end the history of employing surgeons as audiologists in hospitals across China. The operation, which can help deaf people regain their hearing,is not new to these graduates, who, according to their mentor Liu Bo, have obtained professional training adapted from graduate audiology teaching materials from Australian universities. Liu Bo, dean of the audiology department at the Capital Medical Sciences University, said that China has 20.57 million deaf people, which is the largest section of the disabled population, exceeding the numbers of blind and handicapped people. The China Disabled Persons Federation and the Ministry of Health designated March 3 as National Ear Care Day last year. The theme for this year is "Early Intervention against Deafness", which includes deploying precautions, diagnoses and recovery measures. Liu Bo said that audiology was developed in the 1940s, and Australia currently has the world's most advanced audiology techniques. China has cooperated with Australia on therapy for the deaf and the training of professional audiologists. With the rapid development of related sciences such as somatology and electronics, audiology has been making significant progress. The Capital Medical Sciences University, which pioneered the discipline in China in 1996, plans to set up a training center for audiologists, said Liu. |
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