The
National Military Audiology and Speech Pathology Center (NMASC) located on the
campus of Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, represents the highest
echelon of Audiology and Speech Pathology evaluation and treatment in the
Military Healthcare System. Established in 1943, the NMASC has a unique mandate
to coordinate audiology programs, conduct basic, applied and translational
research, and provide consultation for hearing-aid programs, aural
rehabilitation and clinical audiology and speech-pathology services across the
Department of Defense. The mission of the NMASC is to preserve and improve the
health and quality-of-life of our nation’s heroes and their families by
developing, incorporating and disseminating state-of-the-art clinical practices
in Audiology and Speech-Language Pathology.
We provide world-class research, education and care in the areas of:
The mission of the Scientific and Clinical Studies Section (SCSS) is to conduct basic, applied and translational research to support the audiology and speech pathology programs of the Walter Reed National Military Medical Center as well as the Department of Defense and related government entities. Our goal is to conduct research to improve the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation of auditory, vestibular, speech, voice, language, and swallowing impairments and other communication disorders.
The Senior Research Audiologist applicant must have at a minimum:
1. Doctoral degree in Audiology (Au.D.) from an accredited university.
2. Clinical experience with patients and good interpersonal skills.
3. Ability to conduct state-of-the-art clinical audiology evaluations using behavioral and electrophysiological techniques.
4. Basic knowledge of normal and impaired human audition and vestibular function.
5. Experience with auditory/vestibular research or clinical trials and knowledge of computer applications of research, including online data acquisition, interactive computer control of experiments, and data entry and initial analyses and graphical data summaries.
6. Expert understanding of the principles of experimental design, laboratory instrumentation, and data acquisition/analysis techniques.
As Independent Investigator, you will be
responsible for developing and conducting research studies that are extremely
broad in scope and highly complex, involving the development and application of
state-of-the-art technology to questions ultimately relevant to clinical
practice. The researcher develops and applies new technologies and original
methods of attack to solve fundamental problems in hearing science that are
recognized as particularly resistant to experimental resolution (e.g., signal
processing to improve impaired auditory perception, computer modeling of
impaired and normal audition, clinical studies in human audition). Frequently,
little available literature will exist and limited research will have been
conducted. As a Principal Investigator, you will be responsible for
independently acquiring, managing, and expending extramural resources to
support hearing research programs, including staffing requirements.
As a Project Director, you will be responsible for independently acquiring,
managing, and expending extramural resources to support hearing research
programs. You will be responsible for independent planning and execution of
research projects within outlined mission. Consults with supervisor to discuss
research goals and to keep supervisor advised of progress and results of
investigation. Supervisory control is Because incumbent's research involves the
development and application of state-of-the-art technologies to fundamental
problems in audiology that are particularly resistant to experimentation few,
if any, definitive guidelines exist to assist in the design and execution of
experiments. Typically, little relevant literature will exist and limited
research will have been conducted. Rather, the results of incumbent's research
are expected to provide such guidelines for future research efforts, thereby
opening the way for more fruitful experimentation by subsequent researchers.
Each research effort represents a unique problem, requiring the development and
application of new techniques and original methods of attack. Typically
research studies extend existing theory and methodology, and/or contribute
significantly to the development of new theory and methodology. Guidelines for
data acquisition assignments are provided by the appropriate research protocol.
Collaborators in the SCSS often provide general guidelines for technical
support assignments, although incumbent is expected to use initiative to
resolve unfamiliar or unique problems.
In addition to duties as Independent Investigator and Project Director, the Senior Research Audiologist serves as a principle consultant within the Defense Health Agency on research issues related to hearing. As such, you will have a direct impact on research and other scholarly activities throughout the Department of Defense in areas of specialization. The successful applicant will have made outstanding and significant contributions by conducting research in either a broad field or a narrow but very specialized field. The incumbent has conducted independent research related to audition and hearing disorders, has authored numerous first-authored publications of prospective research studies in audiology and/or hearing science in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The incumbent has several years’ experience directing junior scientists, post-doctoral fellows, graduate students, and/or technical support personnel to accomplish major research studies of hearing. Has sought and obtained major multi-year, non-training, governmental or private research grants in the area of audition and/or hearing disorders. Have several years’ experience in an academic or research environment collaborating with faculty or senior-level scientists on research studies, and has been involved in peer review activities e.g., grant review for NIH proposals, local research service committees, Institutional Review Board (IRB), etc., or serve as reviewers for peer-reviewed journals and have several years of post-graduate experience providing technical consultations to scientists in other academic or research environments, such as serving on committees or boards of scientific societies/associations, consulting on funded research grants, and presenting scientific papers at national or international meetings.
The incumbent's research efforts are
recognized to have had a significant impact on hearing science and technology
in area of expertise and is expected to review, analyze, interpret and/or synthesize
scientific knowledge of a broad scope with significant additions to established
knowledge of importance and value to the discipline of hearing science and
disorders. Modified new concepts and/or techniques to deal with new topics of
exploration of importance to the discipline. Caused substantial increase in the
quantity and quality of research productivity by adding substantially to the
resources (e.g., personnel, equipment, etc.) of the Section through the
acquisition of extramural grants and contracts, as well as by the incumbent's
expertise in research methodologies and techniques. Incumbent is sought after
by colleagues in the broader scientific community for technical consultation
and to make invited presentations of research findings.
Supervisory controls are under the Chief of Research and the Director of the
Center and are exercised informally through discussions of general plans,
progress of work, written reports, and relevance of research. Performance is
evaluated primarily in terms of the quality, quantity, and relevance of
research. In consultation with the supervisor, you will identify overall
directions for research, priorities, facilities, and personnel requirements to
assure that research conducted is within the scope of the mission and is
consistent with resources of Research Section. Incumbent is expected to take
full responsibility for the full range of activities associated with each
research project.
Position is open immediately and will remain
open until filled. Please contact:
Ken W. Grant, Ph.D.
Deputy Director, Audiology and Speech Center
Chief, Scientific and Clinical Studies Section
America Building, Room 5601
Walter Reed National Military Medical Center
4954 North Palmer Road
Bethesda, MD 20889-5630
OFFICE: 301-319-7043
CELL: 301-919-2957