Peter Ferguson: Irish Audiologist of the Year for the third time!

Peter Ferguson is, “absolutely delightedand surprised that once again patientstook the time and trouble to nominateme.” The nomination by Mary Fitzgeraldswung the judge’s decision, whichsees Peter receiving the Audiologist ofthe Year title in Ireland for a third time. This awardis more than just a personal award for Peter. Asked how his colleagues in their Limerick practice feelabout him winning again, Peter said, “They are morethan delighted and feel it is a further tremendousrecognition of the practice.”

The Audiologist of the Year competition, run by Rayovacin partnership with Audio Infos and the EuropeanHearing Instrument Manufacturer’s Association(EHIMA), celebrates the very best in the hearing careprofession by inviting patients from 10 countries acrossEurope to share their success stories, explaining howtheir audiologist has made a difference in their lives.This year Mary Fitzgerald felt compelled to nominateher hearing care professional, Peter Ferguson. Mary has been deaf since birth and her hearing has becomeprogressively worse over the years, making lifeextremely difficult for her.

As part of her nomination Mary said, “Peter nevergave up on me. In 2013 I was accepted for a cochlearimplant. Prior to being accepted I was tested by ascientist from the USA who had to check my hearingaids to make sure they were giving me the bestpossible hearing. The tests revealed that my aids werealready some of the best and no further improvementscould be made for me.

“On my journey I met several people on the cochlearimplant list, but were turned away because theirhearing aids were not good enough at all. This wouldnever happen with Peter, he would make sure youwere achieving the maximum hearing. It is with greatconfidence that I still have to attend Peter for a hearingaid in my other ear.”

A lifetime of support

Audio Infos asked Peter about Mary’s time with him andthe team in Limerick. He explained, “Mary first attendedour practice as a very young woman in 1985 and wehave worked together and in conjunction with her ENTconsultants since then to ensure that she is hearing aswell as she possibly can within the limits of her hearingloss which is severe to profound precipitous andsensorineural in nature. She has been fitted with severalpairs of hearing aids over the years and each changewas difficult for her to adjust to and she attendedmany times for multiple fine tuning and rehabilitationappointments. Both she and I always persevereddespite her many and often significant difficulties andconsidering the level of her hearing loss she managedto live a normal life with good speech understanding.

“Her hearing further deteriorated after 2011 and wediscussed the option of a cochlear implant which shevery successfully underwent in her right ear in 2014.She continues to wear a Phonak Naida V UP hearingaid in her left ear and she finds the combination withher Cochlear CI works very well for her. She says thatthe hearing aid balances out the less natural sound ofthe cochlear implant and allows her to continue to live abusy and fulfilling life.”

As Ireland Audiologist of the Year, Peter now goesforward to be considered for European Audiologist ofthe Year. He will compete with audiologists from the UK,Sweden, France, Germany, Austria, the Netherlands,Spain, Denmark and Switzerland for the ultimate title.

A family tradition

Audio Infos asked Peter how he got into the audiologyprofession more than 40 years ago. He explained,“My father started the practice within our familypharmacy business in 1967 having studied Audiologyin Manchester University. I qualified as a pharmacist inUCD initially and directly afterwards undertook the jointBSA /BSHAA course at the Royal National Ear Noseand Throat Hospital, Grays Inn Road. I have continuedto up-skill over the years including completing coursesin Anglia Ruskin and Aston University. I practised bothprofessions for some time but decided to specialise inhearing aid audiology in the mid 1990’s. In conjunctionwith Margaret my wife and Cian our son-in-law bothhearing aid audiologists and Margaret Kennedy ouradministrator, we tailor and individualise our servicesfor those who are hard of hearing providing a consistentoutstanding patient experience in conjunction withoptimal clinical services.”

During these years Peter has also devoted time tointerests outside of the family practice that have helpedmany others. “I am a founding member of the Mid WestSchool for Hearing Impaired Children in Limerick – theonly specialist deaf school outside of Dublin and ourfamily continue involvement with the school. I was alsoa founder member of the Irish Society of Hearing AidAudiologists (ISHAA) and held various roles within theorganisation over many, many years. I remain an activemember of ISHAA.”

A helpful, cheerful, professional face

Although there is never a typical day in any busy hearingaid practice, Audio Infos asked Peter what a day maylook like in the Limerick clinic. He said, “We work as ateam in the practice and without that team commitmentwe would not be looking after those who come to usas well as we do on a daily basis. We see patients atscheduled times but give each one always the time heor she needs. We have emergency time built into ourday which caters for overruns in appointment times orfor anybody who needs to be seen urgently.

“We encourage patients to attend for servicing regularlyso there is a constant flow of people visiting throughoutthe day and also we look after those who contact usover the phone, through our website or via email. Ourreception area is warm, comfortable and inviting andour receptionist Margaret who has been with us formany years is the helpful, cheerful and professional faceof our practice. “We also put time aside to do ongoingtraining and upskilling as you cannot look after peopleproperly and ensure he/she achieve the best outcomespossible without thoroughly understanding the varioustechnologies available. It is widely recognised nowwithin the profession that the hearing aid audiologist ismore critical to the fitting than the technology. We useevidence based systems as standard including Real EarMeasurement, Impedance Measurements, Speech inQuiet audiometry and Speech in Noise tests.”

Speaking about the 2016 awards, Paula Brinson-Pyke,Marketing Director at Rayovac, said, “We’re delightedto announce Peter as the Irish winner. Nine years intothe competition and still, every year, we’re overwhelmedby the heart-warming entries we receive. The entriesshow that this really is more than just a job; the levelof dedication and care demonstrated by the nomineeis phenomenal. Audiologist of the Year is an awardwe’re very proud to have founded and continue to backalongside our partners EHIMA and Audio Infos.”

The overall winner from the ten country winners willbe announced as European Audiologist of the Year atthe Rayovac Evening of Excellence in Hanover duringthe EUHA congress in late October.Good luck Peter!