Hearing Conservation Program | Bertrand-Johnson Acoustics

Section I: Introduction
Section II: The Problem
Section III: Hearing Conservation
Section IV: Data Management
Section V: Our Program
Section VI: Let's Go!

Section I: Introduction

In 1976, Dr. Robert Bertrand, neuro-otologist and founder of Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic, dedicated himself to preserving workers' hearing health.

Thanks to the legacy, expertise and experience he passed on to us, we continue his mission by helping employers deal with the noise risks to which their workers are exposed.

Today, I am speaking to you personally as one of the successors committed to following in Dr. Bertrand's footsteps. Indeed, since ODYO acquired Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic in 2021, my team and I have learned a lot.

We've gotten to know you, our stakeholders, better, mastered our strengths and improved our weaknesses, and solidified our commitment to the workers for whom we want to make a positive impact and preserve their hearing.

Through the content you will read here, I share with you our vision regarding noise-related issues in the workplace. Then, I share how we at Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic can help preserve your employees' hearing.

The content shared here is rich in information, and our goal is to help you understand the importance of a hearing conservation program for your company. Ultimately, we hope it will be relevant to your decision-making process.

Be prepared, it will take about twenty minutes, or more... Let's go!

Occupational hearing loss, caused by exposure to noise in the workplace, affects over 30 million workers in North America. Once established, this form of hearing loss is irreversible and constitutes one of the most significant occupational diseases worldwide.

Fortunately, occupational hearing loss can be prevented.
The process begins by defining the noise risks present in your workplace and is completed by implementing strategies to identify and limit the impact on your workers' hearing health and well-being.

This approach, known as a hearing conservation program, is essential to reducing the incidence of occupational hearing loss.

Typically, a health and safety team finds itself working on a number of prevention projects and issues simultaneously. While a hearing conservation program would certainly support your OHS department's objectives, its installation is not without its pitfalls.

Indeed, the success of a hearing conservation program depends on the extent and quality of knowledge shared between employers, their employees and the service providers involved.

Having carried out prevention programs for clients operating in a variety of sectors and ranging in size from 15 to 1,500 employees, our methodology is always based on the following five steps:

Risk evaluation
Noise reduction
Hearing tests
Training and expertise
Data management

When we talk about risk assessment, we're certainly talking about the noise to which your workers are exposed. At this stage, we define the quantity of noise and identify the sources of noise in the working environment. Sonometry, dosimetry and noise mapping are the tools used in this stage of the process.

Next, the step of reducing noise exposure can involve a number of different actions. Firstly, noise reduction at source is the method preferred by regulations and experts in the field. However, budgetary and productivity issues can limit the number of possible approaches. Alternative strategies are therefore often preferred by our customers to reduce noise exposure. Administrative measures such as changes to working hours are easier to implement. Finally, we find that hearing protection is the solution preferred by our customers since it is generally the simplest strategy to implement.

Hearing tests are used to determine workers' hearing acuity at a given point in time. Performing hearing screenings on hiring and at the end of a job, in combination with periodic screenings, enables you to compare and measure the impact of noise hazards on your workers' hearing. When hearing loss potentially caused by noise exposure is suspected, full audiological assessments by an audiologist and medical expertise that includes the involvement of an ENT doctor are used to identify the cause of the hearing loss and issue a diagnosis.

In our experience, knowledge sharing is a key element in ensuring the success of a hearing conservation program. Training enables workers, as well as your medical or OHS team, to better understand their roles and responsibilities. Involving all stakeholders promotes greater commitment, ensures a greater understanding of the risks and guarantees alignment with the mitigation strategies in place.

Then, evaluating the performance of the hearing conservation program requires clear data. Workplace noise measurements, hearing protection in use, and hearing test results need to be studied to identify employees, departments, or activities in your company that require special attention.

And so begins the process of continuous improvement, because yes, implementing a hearing conservation program requires a long-term commitment.

And yes, data...

It's all over the news, on social networks, in our governments, in my company, and in yours. So you know as well as I do that poorly organized data leads to poorly informed conclusions.

Whether it's a hearing conservation program, a marketing budget, a list of employees, the number of employees per department, noise exposure, or a cash register budget, the stakes are the same...
Data integration and management is the ultimate key to the success of a hearing conservation program, and to managing your company's hearing conservation budget.

So let me ask you: how do you manage your employees' hearing health data?

Now, let's look at how we can work together to reduce the incidence of occupational hearing loss.

To clarify our service offering, here's a list of the products and services that Bertrand-Johnson Acoustics can offer you:

Noise measurements
- Sonometry
- Dosimetry
- Noise mapping
Custom earplugs
- Choice of hearing protection
- Ear impressions taken on site and at nearby clinics
- Various models of custom earplugs
- FIT measurements of earplugs
- Satisfaction analysis questionnaires
Hearing screenings
- On-site at the company
- In a nearby clinic
Training in occupational hearing health
- For workers
- For medical staff
- For OHS personnel
- In-person or online
Expertise and recommendations
- Complete audiological assessment
- Medical expertise in cases of suspected occupational hearing loss
- Occupational hearing health consulting services
Data management using our expert software, CORTI
- Centralize data collection and processing
- To issue administrative reports to medical and OHS personnel
- To produce individualized reports of hearing screening results
Sales management
- Customer portal for request management
- Secure, electronic customer files
- Access to our parent company ODYO's network of partners for other workplace hearing health needs

As an example, here's how we use our resources to set up a hearing conservation program for a typical customer:

BACKGROUND:

The customer wanted to implement a hearing conservation program to counter the effects of noise in the workplace. Operating at four sites across Canada, the client wanted to standardize its offering to workers at its various locations.
Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic (BJA) has been a leader in occupational hearing health since 1976. In 2021, BJA was acquired by ODYO, a leader in hearing health in Canada. The common vocation of BJA and ODYO is the prevention of hearing loss in the workplace.
Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic wishes to extend and offer all its expertise, tools and partnerships for the benefit of the customer, as elaborated in this program.

CLIENT'S OBJECTIVES:

Accompagnement complet pour les dépistages auditifs, la documentation et les suivis

1. Full support for hearing screenings, documentation and follow-ups
2. On-site industrial hearing screening services
3. Access to a customer portal for request management and follow-up
4. On-site noise level assessment
5. Offer custom earplugs to employees
6. Access to experts in occupational hearing health, including audiologists and ENT doctors
7. Medical expertise in cases of occupational hearing loss
8. Access to on-site and web-based training courses

SCOPE OF MANDATE:
Approximately 150 employees are exposed to noise, mostly heavy-duty vehicle mechanics. Employees work at four different sites on two shifts.

DURATION:

BJA proposes an annual service agreement, renewable each year according to the agreement between the two parties. The service offer would take place in the order suggested below, and according to the customer's preferences.

HEARING CONSERVATION PROGRAM

PHASE 1 | RISK ASSESSMENT

- Noise measurement by sonometry and dosimetry, including noise mapping
- Consulting services and expertise will be made available to the client during the assessment and mitigation phase of the risk caused by noise in the workplace.
- Documentation of noise measurement results in CORTI © software
- Recommendations issued and shared with the client to reduce the impact of noise exposure on workers' hearing health

PHASE 2 | NOISE REDUCTION

- On-site personnel and custom impressions
- When necessary, BJA will assign a nearby partner clinic where the customer's workers can go to obtain the service.
- Support the customer's choice of hearing protection
- Allow workers to customize their earplugs (color, cord, finish, etc.)
- Delivery of earplugs in person and on-site adjustments
- Custom measurements of FIT, and actual noise reduction of custom earplugs
- Issuance of an administrative report on FIT measurements to the customer
- Documentation of customized plugs in CORTI © software

PHASE 3 | HEARING TESTS

- BJA moves soundproof booths or a fully equipped trailer to the CLIENT's premises to complete hearing tests on an annual basis.
- Completion of a hearing health questionnaire prior to testing
- When necessary, BJA will assign a nearby partner clinic where the customer's workers can go to obtain the service
- Documentation of screening results in CORTI © software
- Recommendations and administrative reports shared with the client

PHASE 4 | TRAINING AND EXPERTISE

- Online or face-to-face training of participants in the use and care of custom earplugs
- Training for workers and managers on the risks of noise in the workplace and the results of hearing screenings
- Training managers in hearing health and safety (webinars and other)

PHASE 5 | DATA MANAGEMENT

- Management of data and annual reports provided by CORTI © software
- Advice on continuous program improvement
- Medical assessments in cases of occupational hearing loss

While the example shared above is fairly exhaustive, at Bertrand-Johnson Acoustic, we handle requests from a wide range of customers with different backgrounds. Whether it's in Nunavut, Alberta, Quebec or elsewhere, our expertise gets the job done. We tailor each hearing conservation program based on our customers' needs and preferences.

Finally, you've reached the last step: making a decision. This decision is not a commitment on your part, but rather an opportunity to get to know each other better and deepen our discussions about your hearing conservation program.

I understand that you may not yet be ready to embark on a hearing conservation program... You may have a budgetary constraint, or your supervisor may not have given you the go-ahead... Or maybe you've been visiting our website for a particular solution and happened to end up here?

In any case, I hope you've enjoyed the content shared and that I've kept my promise to support you in your decision-making process.

At this time, if you decide to proceed with one of our solutions, rather than a hearing conservation program, I invite you to make an appointment with my colleagues here: book a meeting with the sales team!

However, if you are a decision-maker, if you have their approval, or even their interest, in joining us for a future meeting to discuss the implementation of a hearing conservation program in your company, I invite you to continue below to make an appointment with me directly.

Let's work together to reduce the incidence of occupational hearing loss!

See you soon,

HEARING LOSS
PREVENTION PROGRAM

Introduction

The Problem