2021 Industry Amplification Roundtable

Catherine Palmer
PhD

Catherine Palmer is Professor in the Department of Communication Science and Disorders at the University of Pittsburgh and serves as the Director of Audiology and Hearing Aids at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center including the UPMC Children’s Hospital.  Dr. Palmer conducts research in the areas of auditory learning post hearing aid fitting, the relationship between hearing, cognitive health and health outcomes, and matching technology to individual needs.  She has published over 80 articles and book chapters in these topic areas as well as provided over 100 national and international presentations. Dr. Palmer teaches the graduate level amplification courses at the University of Pittsburgh and serves as Editor-in-Chief of Seminars in Hearing. 

Laurel Christensen
PhD

Chief Audiology Officer at Resound

Laurel A. Christensen, PhD, is currently Chief Audiology Officer for ReSound. In this role she leads all aspects of audiology for the company including new product trials, audiology input to marketing, and global audiology relations which encompasses training and product support to subsidiaries world-wide. In addition to her position at ReSound, she holds adjunct faculty appointments at Northwestern and Rush Universities. She served as an Associate Editor for both Trends in Amplification and the Journal of Speech and Hearing Research. She currently serves as an Editorial Consultant for several other professional journals. She is a member of the Executive Board of the American Auditory Society and a member of the Advisory Board for the Au.D. Program at Rush University. Dr. Christensen received her Master’s degree in clinical audiology in 1989 and her Ph.D. in audiology in 1992 both from Indiana University.

Dave Fabry
PhD

Chief Innovation Officer for Starkey

As Chief Innovation Officer, Dave Fabry, Ph.D., leads end-to-end innovations within Starkey’s clinical audiology department. His collaboration with the engineering and marketing teams allows Starkey Hearing Technologies to continue to design and provide superior products.  Dave Fabry received his Ph.D. in hearing science from the University of Minnesota. Subsequently, he divided his career between academic/clinical roles at the Mayo Clinic, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, the University of Miami Medical Center, and several industry positions. He served as President and Board Member of the American Academy of Audiology and was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the American Auditory Society. Additionally, Dave Fabry is a past Editor-in-Chief of Audiology Today, a past Editor of the American Journal of Audiology, and Section Editor of Ear and Hearing. He is licensed as an Audiologist in Minnesota, Florida, and Rwanda.  His 30+ years of industry experience and proven ability to implement forward-thinking concepts is instrumental in shaping the future innovations at Starkey Hearing Technologies.

Darla Franz

Vice President of Education and Corporate Communication at MED-EL Corporation

Darla is the Vice President of Education and Corporate Communications at MED-EL Corporation. As an audiologist, Darla began working with cochlear implant recipients clinically in 1988 and later joined MED-EL Corporation in 1997. Darla’s passion is ensuring that clinicians working with hearing implants develop a strong foundation in providing excellent patient care.

Donald Hayes
PhD

Director of Clinical Research at Unitron

As Director of Clinical Research, Dr. Donald Hayes is responsible for leading the company’s audiology research efforts, as well as new product concept testing and validation.  Don joined Unitron Hearing in 2002 as Manager, Audiology Research. Prior to joining Unitron, Don held the positions of Assistant Professor at the University of Cincinnati and Lecturer in the Department of Speech Pathology at the University of Toronto. Don has also worked as an Audiologist Consultant for Sunnybrook Health Science Centre in Toronto and the Canadian Ministry of Health as part of the Sioux Lookout Project.  Don works with a network of audiology experts around the world to develop new hearing solutions that incorporate innovative technologies and improve the lives of people with hearing loss.  Don holds a Ph.D. in Audiology from the University of Cincinnati and has published articles in several peer-reviewed and trade journals over the years.

Annette Mazevski
AuD, PhD

Manager of Technology Assessment at Oticon

For nearly 20 years, Annette Mazevski, AuD, PhD has been involved in auditory and hearing aid research within academia and in industry. For the past 8 years, she has been the Manager of Technology Assessment at Oticon, Inc. Her role includes facilitating greater understanding about Oticon products and feature sets to professionals, students and consumers. She demonstrates and encourages use of verification techniques with Oticon products, unravels difficult troubleshooting scenarios, and evaluates new and emerging technologies as well as current products and technologies. She has presented on and published in numerous areas, including mobile app development and usage, digital signal processing. and tinnitus. She completed her AuD from the University of Pittsburgh and her PhD from Gallaudet University, in which her focus was on aging adults and how changes in audibility and memory affect speech task performance.