SAA Committee Member Spotlight: Bryan Greenaway

Name: Bryan Greenaway
University: Pacific University
Year in Program: Third Year (of a three-year program)
Committee: Public Outreach Committee

Why did you decide to become an SAA committee volunteer?
Every day I spend in the clinic, I am reminded how important good hearing health is to every person: old or young, rich or poor. We, as audiologists and student clinicians, know the benefits of good hearing for physical, mental, and emotional health. Unfortunately, there is a knowledge gap in the general population when it comes to audiology and hearing health. The public needs to know what audiology can do for them, legislators need to know the role audiology can play in ensuring a healthy society, and audiologists need to know how they can help bridge this knowledge gap. I joined the Public Outreach Committee to help build avenues for education about audiology for everyone.  Serving on the committee gave me the opportunity to reach out to students and professionals to discuss the future of our profession, and also gave me the opportunity to gain tools and skills to make me a better advocate for our patients and our practitioners.

What do your responsibilities include within your committee?
Our focus this year was strongly on firing up our fellow students to become advocates for their profession. The past year was full of a variety of responsibilities which equally took advantage of the strengths of each committee member while also challenging us to take on new projects and expand our horizons. I have worked on everything from contacting local SAA chapters about events to updating the Advocacy portion of the SAA website to contacting our nation’s leaders about important legislation. Without a doubt, two projects have stood out the most in my tenure. The first was doing a video interview with the President of the Oregon Academy of Audiology in which we discussed advocacy and how grassroots efforts are creating a brighter future for hearing health in Oregon.  The second was working with my fellow committee members to put together and present a talk at this year’s AAA conference on how to become an advocate.

Within the field of audiology, what are your primary interests?
There is nothing more satisfying to me than a well-fit hearing aid. I can’t imagine myself working in a setting where prescribing and fitting amplification isn’t a large part of what I do. Related to that, I have found a great interest in exploring how consumer-facing technologies can fit into the world of audiology.  With smartphones becoming more pervasive, OTC regulations coming down the pipeline, and patients who are more tech-savvy than ever, I am excited for a future in audiology where a hearing health solution for a patient can be made up of a combination of traditional and unconventional interventions.  Finally, I will always consider myself an advocate for our profession. I consider it a core responsibility as a future audiologist to fight for the best possible healthcare landscape for my patients and my colleagues. I will continue to fight for important legislation and take every opportunity to educate and serve my community.