36-1901

36-1901. Definitions

In this chapter, unless the context otherwise requires:

1. "Accredited program" means a program leading to the award of a degree in
audiology that is accredited by an organization recognized for that purpose by the United
States department of education.

2. "Approved training program" means a postsecondary speech-language pathology
assistant training program that is approved by the director.

3. "Assistive listening device or system" means an amplification system that is
specifically designed to improve the signal-to-noise ratio for the listener who is
hearing impaired, reduce interference from noise in the background and enhance hearing
levels at a distance by picking up sound from as close to the source as possible and
sending it directly to the ear of the listener, excluding hearing aids.

4. "Audiologist" means a person who engages in the practice of audiology and who
meets the requirements prescribed in this chapter.

5. "Audiology" means the nonmedical and nonsurgical application of principles,
methods and procedures of measurement, testing, evaluation and prediction that are
related to hearing, its disorders and related communication impairments for the purpose
of nonmedical diagnosis, prevention, amelioration or modification of these disorders and
conditions.

6. "Clinical interaction" means a fieldwork practicum in speech-language pathology
that is supervised by a licensed speech-language pathologist.

7. "Department" means the department of health services.

8. "Direct supervision" means the on-site, in-view observation and guidance of a
speech-language pathology assistant by a licensed speech-language pathologist while the
speech-language pathology assistant performs an assigned clinical activity.

9. "Director" means the director of the department.

10. "Disorders of communication" means an organic or nonorganic condition that
impedes the normal process of human communication and includes disorders of speech,
articulation, fluency, voice, verbal and written language, auditory comprehension,
cognition and communications and oral, pharyngeal and laryngeal sensorimotor
competencies.

11. "Disorders of hearing" means an organic or nonorganic condition, whether
peripheral or central, that impedes the normal process of human communication and
includes disorders of auditory sensitivity, acuity, function or processing.

12. "Hearing aid" means any wearable instrument or device designed for or
represented as aiding or improving human hearing or as aiding, improving or compensating
for defective human hearing, and any parts, attachments or accessories of the instrument
or device, including ear molds, but excluding batteries and cords.

13. "Hearing aid dispenser" means any person who engages in the practice of fitting
and dispensing hearing aids.

14. "Indirect supervision" means supervisory activities, other than direct
supervision that are performed by a licensed speech-language pathologist and that may
include consultation, record review and review and evaluation of audiotaped or videotaped
sessions.

15. "Letter of concern" means an advisory letter to notify a licensee that, while
there is insufficient evidence to support disciplinary action, the director believes the
licensee should modify or eliminate certain practices and that continuation of the
activities that led to the information being submitted to the director may result in
action against the licensee.

16. "License" means a license issued by the director under this chapter and includes
a temporary license.

17. "Nonmedical diagnosing" means the art or act of identifying a communication
disorder from its signs and symptoms. Nonmedical diagnosing does not include diagnosing
a medical disease.

18. "Practice of audiology" means:

(a) Rendering or offering to render to a person or persons who have or who are
suspected of having disorders of hearing any service in audiology including prevention,
identification, evaluation, consultation, habilitation, rehabilitation, instruction and
research.

(b) Participating in hearing conservation, hearing aid and assistive listening
device evaluation and hearing aid prescription preparation, fitting, dispensing and
orientation.

(c) Screening, identifying, assessing, nonmedical diagnosing, preventing and
rehabilitating peripheral and central auditory system dysfunctions.

(d) Providing and interpreting behavioral and physiological measurements of
auditory and vestibular functions.

(e) Selecting, fitting and dispensing assistive listening and alerting devices and
other systems and providing training in their use.

(f) Providing aural rehabilitation and related counseling services to hearing
impaired persons and their families.

(g) Screening speech-language and other factors that affect communication function
in order to conduct an audiologic evaluation and an initial identification of persons
with other communications disorders and making the appropriate referral.

(h) Planning, directing, conducting or supervising services.

19. "Practice of fitting and dispensing hearing aids" means the measurement of human
hearing by means of an audiometer or by any other means, solely for the purpose of making
selections or adaptations of hearing aids, and the fitting, sale and servicing of hearing
aids, including assistive listening devices and the making of impressions for ear molds
and includes identification, instruction, consultation, rehabilitation and hearing
conservation as these relate only to hearing aids and related devices and, at the request
of a physician or another licensed health care professional, the making of audiograms for
the professional's use in consultation with the hearing impaired. The practice of
fitting and dispensing hearing aids does not include formal auditory training programs,
lip reading and speech conservation.

20. "Practice of speech-language pathology" means:

(a) Rendering or offering to render to an individual or groups of individuals who
have or are suspected of having disorders of communication service in speech-language
pathology including prevention, identification, evaluation, consultation, habilitation,
rehabilitation, instruction and research.

(b) Screening, identifying, assessing, interpreting, nonmedical diagnosing and
rehabilitating disorders of speech and language.

(c) Screening, identifying, assessing, interpreting, nonmedical diagnosing and
rehabilitating disorders of oral-pharyngeal functions and related disorders.

(d) Screening, identifying, assessing, interpreting, nonmedical diagnosing and
rehabilitating cognitive and communication disorders.

(e) Assessing, selecting and developing augmentative and alternative communication
systems and providing training in the use of these systems and assistive listening
devices.

(f) Providing aural rehabilitation and related counseling services to hearing
impaired persons and their families.

(g) Enhancing speech-language proficiency and communication effectiveness.

(h) Screening hearing and other factors for speech-language evaluation and
initially identifying persons with other communication disorders and making the
appropriate referral.

21. "Regular license" means each type of license issued by the director, except a
temporary license.

22. "Sell" or "sale" means a transfer of title or of the right to use by lease,
bailment or any other contract, but does not include transfers at wholesale to
distributors or dealers.

23. "Speech-language pathology" means the nonmedical and nonsurgical application of
principles, methods and procedures of assessment, testing, evaluation and prediction
related to speech and language and its disorders and related communication impairments
for the nonmedical diagnosis, prevention, amelioration or modification of these disorders
and conditions.

24. "Speech-language pathology assistant" means a person who provides services
prescribed in section 36-1940.04 and under the direction and supervision of a
speech-language pathologist licensed pursuant to this chapter.

25. "Sponsor" means a person who is licensed pursuant to this chapter and who agrees
to train or directly supervise a temporary licensee in the same field of practice.

26. "Temporary licensee" means a person who is licensed under this chapter for a
specified period of time under the sponsorship of a person licensed pursuant to this
chapter.

27. "Unprofessional conduct" means:

(a) Obtaining any fee or making any sale by fraud or misrepresentation.

(b) Employing directly or indirectly any suspended or unlicensed person to perform
any work covered by this chapter.

(c) Using, or causing or promoting the use of, any advertising matter, promotional
literature, testimonial, guarantee, warranty, label, brand, insignia or other
representation, however disseminated or published, that is misleading, deceiving,
improbable or untruthful.

(d) Advertising for sale a particular model, type or kind of product when
purchasers or prospective purchasers responding to the advertisement cannot purchase or
are dissuaded from purchasing the advertised model, type or kind if the purpose of the
advertisement is to obtain prospects for the sale of a different model, type or kind than
that advertised.

(e) Representing that the professional services or advice of a physician will be
used or made available in the selling, fitting, adjustment, maintenance or repair of
hearing aids if this is not true, or using the words "doctor", "clinic", "clinical" or
like words, abbreviations or symbols while failing to affix the word, term or initials
"audiology", "audiologic", "audiologist", "doctor of audiology", "Au.D.", "Ph.D." or
"Sc.D.".

(f) Defaming competitors by falsely imputing to them dishonorable conduct,
inability to perform contracts or questionable credit standing or by other false
representations, or falsely disparaging the products of competitors in any respect, or
their business methods, selling prices, values, credit terms, policies or services.

(g) Displaying competitive products in the licensee's show window, shop or
advertising in such manner as to falsely disparage such products.

(h) Representing falsely that competitors are unreliable.

(i) Quoting prices of competitive products without disclosing that they are not the
current prices, or showing, demonstrating or representing competitive models as being
current models when they are not current models.

(j) Imitating or simulating the trademarks, trade names, brands or labels of
competitors with the capacity, tendency or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers
or prospective purchasers.

(k) Using in the licensee's advertising the name, model name or trademark of a
particular manufacturer of hearing aids in such a manner as to imply a relationship with
the manufacturer that does not exist, or otherwise to mislead or deceive purchasers or
prospective purchasers.

(l) Using any trade name, corporate name, trademark or other trade designation that
has the capacity, tendency or effect of misleading or deceiving purchasers or prospective
purchasers as to the name, nature or origin of any product of the industry, or of any
material used in the product, or that is false, deceptive or misleading in any other
material respect.

(m) Obtaining information concerning the business of a competitor by bribery of an
employee or agent of that competitor, by false or misleading statements or
representations, by the impersonation of one in authority, or by any other unfair means.

(n) Giving directly or indirectly, offering to give, or permitting or causing to be
given money or anything of value, except miscellaneous advertising items of nominal
value, to any person who advises another in a professional capacity as an inducement to
influence that person or have that person influence others to purchase or contract to
purchase products sold or offered for sale by a hearing aid dispenser, or to influence
persons to refrain from dealing in the products of competitors.

(o) Sharing any profits or sharing any percentage of a licensee's income with any
person who advises another in a professional capacity as an inducement to influence that
person or have that person influence others to purchase or contract to purchase products
sold or offered for sale by a hearing aid dispenser or to dissuade persons from dealing
in products of competitors.

(p) Failing to comply with existing federal regulations regarding the fitting and
dispensing of a hearing aid.

(q) Conviction of a felony or a misdemeanor that involves moral turpitude.

(r) Fraudulently obtaining or attempting to obtain a license or a temporary license
for the applicant, the licensee or another person.

(s) Aiding or abetting unlicensed practice.

(t) Wilfully making or filing a false audiology, speech-language pathology or
hearing aid dispenser evaluation.

(u) The use of narcotics, alcohol or drugs to the extent that the performance of
professional duties is impaired.

(v) Betraying a professional confidence.

(w) Any conduct, practice or condition that impairs the ability of the licensee to
safely and competently engage in the practice of audiology, speech-language pathology or
hearing aid dispensing.

(x) Providing services or promoting the sale of devices, appliances or products to
a person who cannot reasonably be expected to benefit from these services, devices,
appliances or products.

(y) Being disciplined by a licensing or disciplinary authority of any state,
territory or district of this country for an act that is grounds for disciplinary action
under this chapter.

(z) Violating any provision of this chapter or failing to comply with rules adopted
pursuant to this chapter.

(aa) Failing to refer an individual for medical evaluation if a condition exists
that is amenable to surgical or medical intervention prescribed by the advisory committee
and consistent with federal regulations.

(bb) Practicing in a field or area within that licensee's defined scope of practice
in which the licensee has not either been tested, taken a course leading to a degree,
received supervised training, taken a continuing education course or had adequate prior
experience.

(cc) Failing to affix the word, term or initials "audiology", "audiologic",
"audiologist", "doctor of audiology", "Au.D.", "Ph.D." or "Sc.D." in any sign, written
communication or advertising media in which the term "doctor" or the abbreviation "Dr."
is used in relation to the audiologist holding a doctoral degree.