About our research

The Hispanic/Latino population is the fastest growing minority group in the U.S. Approximately 20% of the U.S. population identifies as Hispanic/Latino, and 30% of them prefer to communicate in Spanish. However, the number of Spanish speaking audiologists remains disproportionate to the Spanish speaking population. In addition, bilingual (Spanish and English) audiologists might still lack the Spanish language skills needed to provide effective and safe care in a clinical setting. We believe that bilingual audiology students (Hispanic and non-Hispanic) hold the potential to bring language concordant audiology services to Spanish speaking patients if given the tools to expand their Spanish language skills for clinical care. Therefore, we seek to:

  • Help bilingual (ES/EN) AuD students expand their Spanish language skills by teaching them Medical Spanish specific to hearing and balance services so they can provide safe and effective clinical services to Spanish speaking patients.

  • Measure their Medical Spanish language skill prior and post taking our curriculum using evidence-based grading tools.

  • Follow up their progress at years 1 and 3 post curriculum to test if they can sustain the language skills acquired.

Pilo Study

During the first phase of this research project, we aim to launch a pilot study to assess our course delivery and measuring tools. Those participants who qualify to participate will be offered the possibility to enroll in our Medical Spanish for Audiologists course and receive two free books on Medical Spanish for Audiologists. Potential participants must meet the following criteria:

  • They completed an AuD degree in the U.S. in 2025.

  • They possess Spanish language skills at an intermediate or advance level.

  • They can commit to a 35 hr. course over eight weeks

Research Team

  • Principal Investigator: Laura Coco, PhD, AuD, San Diego State University

    Dr. Coco’s research interests include Hispanic/Latino hearing health; hearing loss and aging; community-engaged research; and health services, including service delivery models (e.g., telehealth). More specifically, Dr. Coco’s research focuses on identifying disparities in the delivery of hearing healthcare services and developing strategies to improve access to, and equity of, audiology care for marginalized populations. She uses both quantitative and qualitative assessment to gain an understanding of disparities, barriers in access, how care is delivered, as well as intervention outcomes that help inform the implementation of interventions and service delivery models.

  • Coinvestigator: Alejandra Ullauri, AuD, MPH, Audiology En Español

    Dr. Ullauri is a bilingual audiologist licensed in the state of Illinois, and the author of Audiology Services in Diverse Communities. She is a native Spanish speaker, born and raised in Ecuador. Dr. Ullauri studied Audiology in the U.S. and in Australia, and she has been fortunate to practice the profession in both languages: two years in the United Kingdom, nine years in the U.S., and seven years in Ecuador. Dr. Ullauri is a verified Physician Oral Language Observation Matrix (POLOM) rater and a member of the National Association of Medical Spanish. She currently participates as a subject matter expert on pediatric hearing screening at the National Center on Health, Behavioral Health, and Safety.