Prevalence of Hearing Loss and Perceptions of Hearing Health and Protection among Florida Firefighters

Barbara Millet (), Hillary A. Snapp, Suhrud M. Rajguru and Natasha Schaefer Solle
Additional contact information
Barbara Millet: Department of Interactive Media, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
Hillary A. Snapp: Department of Otolaryngology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
Suhrud M. Rajguru: Department of Otolaryngology, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA
Natasha Schaefer Solle: Department of Medicine, University of Miami, Miami, FL 33136, USA

IJERPH, 2023, vol. 20, issue 5, 1-16

Abstract: Firefighters are exposed to extensive hazardous noise while on the job, both during routine tasks at the station and when responding to calls. However, little is known about firefighters’ occupational noise hazards. This study employed mixed methods, including focus groups, a survey, and audiometric testing, to identify sources of noise in the firefighters’ work environment, determine hearing protective strategies, discern firefighters’ perceptions of occupational noise exposure and impacts to their health, and quantify the prevalence of hearing loss among South Florida firefighters. A total of 6 senior officers served in an expert panel, 12 participated in focus groups, 300 completed the survey, and 214 received audiometric tests. Most firefighters were unaware of the risk and their departments’ policies, and did not participate in hearing protection practices and avoided using hearing protection devices, which they believed impede team communication and situational awareness. Nearly 30% of participating firefighters showed mild to profound hearing loss, a prevalence that is considerably worse than expected by normal aging alone. Educating firefighters about noise-induced hearing loss early in their careers may have significant health implications for their future. These findings provide insights for developing technologies and programs to mitigate the effects of noise exposure in the firefighting population.

Keywords: noise exposure; noise-induced hearing loss; hearing protection devices; occupational safety (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2023
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/5/3826/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/5/3826/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:20:y:2023:i:5:p:3826-:d:1075627

Access Statistics for this article

IJERPH is currently edited by Ms. Jenna Liu

More articles in IJERPH from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().