Prof. Dr. Annette Limberger, who teaches in the Audiology and Hearing Acoustics degree program at Aalen University of Applied Sciences, has now been awarded the Foundation Prize of the Research Foundation of German Hearing Aid Acousticians (FDHA). She was awarded the prize at the 68th International Convention of the European Union of Hearing Aid Acousticians (EUHA) in Hanover.
According to Statista, there are around 5.4 million hearing impaired people in Germany. Only a small proportion of them wear a hearing aid. Yet good hearing is essential for orientation, communication and hazard recognition. "Hearing loss often results in social withdrawal and isolation. The risk of dementia is also increased," says Professor Dr. Annette Limberger. She is not only a trained audiologist, but also a specialist in voice, language (of instruction) and childhood hearing disorders. She was appointed to Aalen University of Applied Sciences in 2007. In the Audiology and Hearing Acoustics degree programme, Limberger teaches the Departments of Audiology, Hearing System Fitting, Implantable Systems and the field (of) Hearing Diagnostics and Care in Children. She is also head of the Department of Phoniatrics and Pedaudiology at the Hospital for Ear, Nose and Throat Medicine, Head and Neck Surgery at the SLK clinics in Heilbronn. Limberger has also been involved on a voluntary basis for many years, in particular to help "little" patients with hearing impairments. For example, she regularly travels to Jordan - also with her students - to provide local support with medical investigations/analyses and the fitting of hearing aids.
Limberger has now been awarded the Foundation Prize of the Research Association of German Hearing Aid Acousticians (FDHA) for her great commitment. In her laudatory speech, Prof. Dr. Karin Schorn, chairperson of the FDHA, highlighted the award winner's personal background and paid tribute to Limberger's decades of interdisciplinary work in the fields (of) hearing acoustics, medicine, speech therapy and Theory of Education. Limberger is also involved in professional organizations such as the German Society of Audiology, the German Society of Phoniatrics & Pedaudiology and the European Union of Hearing Aid Acousticians. "In her research work, Professor Dr. Annette Limberger always focuses on providing better care for hearing impaired people, especially children with hearing impairments," said the laudator. For children with hearing loss in particular, it is important to go beyond the provision of hearing aids and provide funding to ensure good hearing and speech development.
