Presenter Biographies
Kirsten R. McCall, Au.D., CCC-A, CPS/A
Practicing as an occupational audiologist for over 25 years, Kirsten’s passion is the prevention of noise-induced hearing loss. She is a member of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and the National Hearing Conservation Association. Kirsten became a certified Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC) Course Director in 1994. Dr. McCall teaches numerous initial and recertification courses to nurses, physicians, industrial hygienists, safety personnel, and medical assistants from occupational health clinics. She currently serves on the CAOHC OHC committee is also a CAOHC-certified Professional Supervisor.
As a consulting audiologist to industry, Dr. McCall serves as the Professional Supervisor of numerous hearing conservation programs. Her responsibilities include audiometric data review and reporting, determination of work-relatedness, compliance audits, and professional supervision of audiometric technicians, hearing loss prevention training, and comprehensive noise surveys. In 2015, Dr. McCall launched her own company, Audiology Consulting and Training. Recreationally, Kirsten’s other passion is golf.
Vickie Tuten, AuD, CCC-A, CPS/A
Dr. Tuten has over 35 years of experience as an Audiologist in both the Department of Defense and civilian sectors. As an Army audiologist she served as Program Manager for several large installation hearing programs, as a Staff Officer in the Office of the Surgeon General, and as Director of the Otolaryngology Technician Program at the Medical Education and Training Campus. She served as Branch Chief, Prevention and Surveillance, for the Defense Hearing Center of Excellence and recently went into semi-retirement and instructs CAOHC-approved hearing technician courses. Dr. Tuten has an Audiology Doctorate from Central Michigan University. She is currently the Coordinator, Specialty Interest Group (SIG 8), American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) and Past President, National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA). She holds certification as a CAOHC Course Director and Professional Supervisor.
Dr. Tuten has obtained experience in both the Department of Defense and civilian sectors clinical care, program management at both an operational and strategic level, and as an instructor. Dr. Tuten has an Audiology Doctorate from Central Michigan University. She is currently on the Coordinating Committee of SIG 8, Past President, National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA). She holds certification as a CAOHC Course Director and Professional Supervisor.
Laurie Wells, AuD, FAAA, CPS/A
Dr. Wells is a board-certified audiologist and Senior Acoustics RegulatoryAffairs Specialist for 3M Occupational Health & Environmental Safety Division, a consulting firm specializing in prevention of noise-induced hearing loss through a “best practices” approach in noise measurement, noise control, and occupational audiology review and management of hearing conservation programs. Laurie received her Master’s degree from University of Arizona and her AuD, degree from Pennsylvania School of Optometry, School of Audiology. Dr. Wells is a certified Professional Supervisor of the Audiometric Component of a Hearing Conservation Program. As a consultant to companies ationwide, she provides professional audiology review of hearing conservation programs to ensure effective protection from noise hazards to both employers and employees. This includes audiometric database management, assessment of hearing protection devices, work-related determination for recordkeeping purposes, employee/employer education, and employee noise exposure assessment. Dr. Wells is a certified course director for the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation and is frequently one of the top 25 most active course directors. She has also taught numerous seminars, graduate audiology courses, and has given numerous presentations at state and national conferences. Dr. Wells is past-president of the National Hearing Conservation Association (NHCA), and served on the NHCA board from 1999 – 2007. She represents the American Academy of Audiology on the CAOHC Council, as of 2007. She is a fellow of the American Academy of Audiology and member of the Colorado Academy of Audiology, and National Hearing Conservation Association.
Charlie Moritz, MS, INCE Bd Cert.
Charles Moritz is the Vice President of Research and Development for the Blachford Acoustics Group where his team focuses on the development of treatments to reduce noise exposure and improve sound quality. Charles has been active in noise measurement and control for more than 30 years and holds degrees in Aerospace Engineering and Music from the University of Cincinnati, a Master’s Degree in Acoustics from The Pennsylvania State University, is Board Certified in noise control engineering by the Institute of Noise Control Engineering, and a CAOHC Course Director. In addition to more than 30 conference presentations, his publications include authoring or co-authoring chapters in the Hearing Conservation Manual, The Occupational Environment: Its Evaluation, Control, and Management, and the Encyclopedia of Acoustics.
John "Andy" Merkley, AuD, CCC-A, CPS/A
Dr. John ‘Andy’ Merkley is an audiologist with the United States Army and is currently assigned as the Army Liaison Officer to the Defense Hearing Center of Excellence and Regional Health Command - Central Audiology Consultant. Over the past 20 years, Andy has served in a variety of capacities with responsibilities for hearing conservation and clinical audiology services for Army Installations with populations ranging from 10 – 30 thousand Soldiers and noise-exposed DoD civilians. His past duty assignments include Ft. Drum, NY, Wuerzburg, Germany, Baghdad, Iraq, Army Public Health Command Europe Region, and Ft. Carson, CO. He holds a double Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts and Sciences and Communication Disorders from Utah State University, a Master of Science in Audiology from Utah State University, and a Doctor of Audiology from Central Michigan University. Andy is one of the Military Audiology Association representatives to the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation (CAOHC), where he serves as Chair of the Occupational Hearing Conservationist and Course Director Committee and Vice Chair of Education on the CAOHC Executive Committee. He is a member of the American Speech-Language Hearing Association, National Hearing Conservation Association, and Military Audiology Association. He holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology (CCC-A), and is a CAOHC Certified Professional Supervisor of the Audiometric Monitoring Program (CPS/A).
Carol Snyderwine, MHA, MA, CCC-A, CPS/A
Carol Snyderwine is an audiologist and has worked over 30 years for the Cleveland Clinic Health System where she manages a mobile, occupational hearing conservation program. This mobile unit provides on-site hearing tests in the greater Cleveland/Akron area. Carol reviews audiograms and provides follow-up audiometry for those workers having problem audiograms. Carol also reviews audiograms and consults for industries having their own in-house hearing conservation programs. She successfully completed the Professional Supervisor of Audiometry certification in March 2005.
Elliott Berger, MS, INCE Bd Cert.
Elliott is a Division Scientist for 3M’s Personal Safety Division. For 40 years he has studied hearing protection, hearing conservation, and related topics, and authored 14 textbook chapters and over 70 published articles. He was the lead editor of the best-selling 4th and 5th editions of the AIHANoise Manual. He chairs the ANSI working group on hearing protector attenuation, served on a National Academy of Science committee on hearing loss in the military, is a Fellow of the ASA, Past-President of NHCA, Fellow of the AIHA and Past-Chair of its Noise Committee, a past Board Member of CAOHC, a member of ASHA and AAA, and a recipient of NHCA’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Among his favorite sounds is the silvery flutter of the leaves of a stand of river birch tickled by a cool evening breeze.
D. Bruce Kirchner, MD, MPH, CPS/A
Dr. Kirchner recently retired as the Global Medical Leader for Procter & Gamble’s Household Care business, with responsibilities for assuring the occupational health of 30,000 employees in manufacturing and research. Additionally, he was the system owner for hearing conservation across the company. He retired from the U.S. Army in 1995 after 21 ears of service in which he was involved in hearing conservation in field units, as well as industrial operations. Dr. Kirchner has a B.A. in English from the Virginia Military Institute, an M.D. from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Medicine, and an MPH from the University Of Pittsburgh School Of Public Health. He is board certified in Internal Medicine, Occupational Medicine, and Preventive Medicine & Public Health. Dr. Kirchner is the ACOEM liaison to the National Hearing Conservation Association. He is also a Fellow of the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. Dr. Kirchner is appointed to the Council for Accreditation in Occupational Hearing Conservation representing ACOEM. Dr. Kirchner currently serves CAOHC as its Past-Chair and as Committee Chair of the Professional Supervisor Committee.