Site:
Miami VA Healthcare System

Location:
1201 NW 16th Street
Miami, FL 33125
United States

Description:
The Miami VA Audiology externship positions offers a wide variety of clinical experiences.
Externs will work at the main facility in Miami as well as the outpatient clinics in Fort Lauderdale. We are proud to serve veterans in three South Florida counties: Miami-Dade, Broward and Monroe. We are a comprehensive medical system serving both urban and rural areas. In addition to the building the clinical skills, externs will participate in journal review, hearing aid workshops, and may be asked to provide presentations to the clinical staff in the Audiology service as well as other clinical care providers.

Number of externship positions:
2

Funding is assigned by the Office of Academic Affairs and may not have been determined by the application deadline. OAA funding is announced nationally at the same time which should allow sites to know funding at approximately the same time. Historically, our site:
has received funding for 2 externship positions.

Clinical opportunities provided during the externship:

• Audiologic evaluation
• Immittance measures
• Otoacoustic emissions
• Hearing aid selection
• Hearing aid fitting
• Assistive listening devices
• Vestibular evaluation
• Vestibular rehabilitation
• Electrophysiology evaluation
• Tinnitus evaluation
• Tinnitus management
• Cochlear Implant evaluation
• Cochlear Implant management
• Auditory Processing evaluation
• Cerumen Management
• Telehealth program
• ENT clinic
• Industrial/hearing conservation

Clinical opportunities not listed above:
Inpatient bedside care; Teaching Aural Rehabilitation Groups, Teaching Tinnitus Group

Externship site expects the extern to have mastered these skills before they begin their clinical externship:

• Comprehensive audiologic evaluations (air/bone pure tones, speech testing, masking) Immittance test battery
• Otoscopy
• Hearing aid verification measures
• Basic hearing aid repair knowledge

Externship site expects the extern to learn/demonstrate these skills during their clinical externship:
At the conclusion of their externship, students are expected to show proficiency in the following:

• Cerumen management
• Vestibular Evaluation
• Vestibular Rehabilitation
• Tinnitus Counseling
• Electrophysiologic testing
• Providing care via video modalities (clinical video telehealth, VA Video Connect, Remote Programming applications)

By the end of their externship year, students are expected to be independent clinicians using best practices to provide high level care to their patients.

Number of audiologists at site:
15

Number of staff at site:
26

Audiologists holding CCC-A certification:
7

Audiologists holding ABA certification:
2

What level of supervision is provided:
Graduated levels starting at 100% and reducing direct supervision as extern demonstrates their skills

Number of patients seen per year:
28526

How many students per year both interns and externs:
2 externs (year-round) and 3 interns (1 in the fall, 1 in the spring and 1 in the summer).

Continuing Education opportunities:

• Students are able to attend all in house (or Web based) manufacturer hearing aid trainings- Students will have their own dedicated manufacturer training day where each manufacturer will spend 2 hours with them to review products and software to help familiarize them with what is available.
• Will be approved to attend 2 off site hearing aid manufacturer or specialty training
• Will be approved to attend 1 professional conference (ex. JDVAC, AAA)

Travel to satellites required?:
Yes

Are there interdisciplinary opportunities? If so what:

• ENT
• Speech Pathology
• Optometry & Low Vision clinic
• Geriatrics/Community Living Center
• Whole Health coaching
• Geriatric Research & Education Center (GRECC) lunch & learn meetings- As advance Allied Health Trainees, the extern will provide will lecture during the lunch & learn series

Do you have a consortium or collaborative arrangements with other sites that provides additional experience?:
No

What communication or other support do you expect or require from university during externship?
Email communication with externship coordinator; midterm and final evaluation communication, notification of specific class requirements that may take place during clinic hours; support if remediation is required

Site’s application requirements:

• Cover letter
• Resume
• Transcripts (unofficial are allowed)
• 3 letters of recommendation (these can be sent directly from author)

Steps for the student/university to follow the application process:
Applicants should email application materials to:
Erica Dombrowsky, AuD
erica.dombrowsky2@va.gov

Site’s application deadline:
September 22, 2023

Site’s externship contact:
Erica Dombrowsky, AuD

Anticipated decision date:
October 23, 2023