Filing a Complaint with the Board

The Board investigates complaints against audiologists, hearing aid dispensers and speech-language pathologists. If you wish to file a complaint with the Board, you may complete the Complaint Form or you may write a letter to the Board explaining your complaint. In either case, the complaint must be signed and dated.

Please include in the complaint the name, business a nd home address and telephone numbers for yourself, the practitioner and a ll other persons who have knowledge of the complaint.

In order to investigate the complaint, the Board will need to review the medical records concerning the occurrence in the complaint. Please also include in the complaint a statement that you consent to the release to the Board of medical records relating to you and the occurrence in the complaint from a ny hospital, related in stitution or health care practitioner, including the practitione r about whom you are making the complaint.

You should be aware that when a complaint is received, the Board normally forwards a copy of the complaint to the professional and requests that he or she respond to the issues in the complaint. If you feel that there are reasons that the complaint should not be shared with the practitioner for response, please include these reasons on a separate statement attached to the complaint.

Board Review

The Board will review the complaint and the practitioner's response and will determine whether further investigation is warranted. If the complaint is referred for further investigation, the investigation may take ninety days or more. The Board's process for handling complaints is explained in the section entitled Complaint Procedures . The Board will keep you advised of the status of your complaint and will advise you when a final determination is made.

The Board does not have authority to handle complaints concerning fee disputes, refunds or other similar economic issues where there does not appear to be a claim of fraud or misrepresentation. The Board refers such complaints to the Consumer Protection Division of the Attorney General's Office. The Board will notify you if such a referral is made.