Audiologist Dispersion and Workforce Sufficiency in Texas: A Public Health Investigation

Area of Science:

• Audiology
• Public Health
• Healthcare Workforce Analysis

Background:

• Limited access to qualified audiologists hinders timely hearing healthcare for individuals with hearing loss.
• The existing U.S. audiology workforce is insufficient to meet escalating hearing health needs.
• Geographic distribution of audiologists is a key factor in healthcare accessibility.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the geographic dispersion of audiologists within Texas.
• To evaluate audiology workforce sufficiency across Texas counties using established benchmarks.
• To identify hearing healthcare shortage areas in Texas.

Main Methods:

• Assessed hearing health accessibility in all 254 Texas counties using provider-to-population ratios (1:3,500, 1:5,000, 1:10,000).
• Categorized workforce sufficiency by public health service regions, rurality, and border designations.
• Determined geographic hearing health accessibility as sufficient or insufficient.

Main Results:

• 96% of Texas counties (244/254) have an insufficient number of audiologists.
• Most public health service regions are understaffed, with few exceptions in the Dallas metro area.
• Audiologist access remains limited across rural and border regions.

Conclusions:

• The audiology workforce in Texas is inadequate to meet population demand.
• State policies must address audiology workforce shortages and "deserts."
• Telehealth presents a viable strategy to improve audiology service access in underserved areas.