Associations that make up the F.I.A.P.E

FRANCE - Optim’ Ecoute. www.optimecoute.com

Optim’ Ecoute is the French association of listening-optimisation practitioners.

A member of the International Federation of Audio-Psycho-Phonology. Its purpose is to safeguard and develop Audio-Psycho-Phonology*, originally created and established by Professor Alfred Tomatis (1920-2001).

*The science establishing the links between hearing, the psyche and the voice.

Its 3 main activities:

1. To list and promote certified practitioners, backed by the Optim’Ecoute guarantee
2. To train future practitioners
3. To make Audio-Psycho-Phonology known to the general public and to professionals

Our Quality Charter

Our training work rests on absolute respect for the spirit and ethics of the audio-psycho-phonology method initiated by A. Tomatis.

In recent years we have witnessed the spread of various personal interpretations of the theoretical thinking and practical applications of the Tomatis method.

We stand free of any conflict of interest. The aim of our training is not the sale of equipment.

At the end of the training, we will direct those trainees who wish to practise the method to the companies that are able to supply equipment meeting quality standards.

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Poland - CAPF

Centre Espace, Audio-Psycho-Phonology Association. www.tomatis-warszawa.pl

Our association has brought together professionals in Audio-Psycho-Phonology according to Alfred Tomatis since 1990

The “ESPACE” Centre, an Audio-Psycho-Phonology association, is dedicated to supporting auditory function, which enhances concentration, learning quality, language and communication. The method used is the education of auditory attention, also known as auditory training or the method according to A. Tomatis, using analogue equipment that is essential to the proper application of this method.

The founder of the “ESPACE” Centre for Audio-Psycho-Phonology is Małgorzata Szurlej, a psychologist and audio-psycho-phonologist by training, who in the 1990s worked under the guidance of Professor Alfred Tomatis in France and in England. For more than 20 years she has been a lecturer and trainer in the field of human-resources management and interpersonal communication, and in the field of neuroscience. She began by spreading Professor Alfred Tomatis’s method in Poland, gradually widening the scope of her activities to Mexico, Russia, Ukraine and Bulgaria, thanks to strong international collaboration between France, Spain, Italy and others.

She has many years of experience in applying therapeutic methods to children and adults.

Today, the “ESPACE” Centre offers the most modern methods and programmes to stimulate learning processes and enhance mental potential.

The main purpose of the “ESPACE” Centre Association is to help children with school difficulties, dyslexia, ADHD and autism. The methods are also intended for adults suffering from communication problems, memory disorders and depression.

OUR OBJECTIVES:

1. To promote the interests of Polish professionals in Audio-Psycho-Phonology according to A. Tomatis.
2. To represent our members’ interests before public institutions.
3. To promote public information on the possibilities and aims of Audio-Psycho-Phonology according to A. Tomatis.
4. To ensure training in A.P.P., continuing education and the maintenance of our members’ professional quality.
5. To foster communication among Audio-Psycho-Phonology professionals according to A. Tomatis in Poland and abroad, as well as with other professionals and institutions in related fields.

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SPAIN – ALTOMTOMATIS®

Throughout all these years of existence, our Association has become a meeting place where we can share our experiences and rigorously carry on the legacy of our founder. Thus, training new therapists and developing the scientific heritage of Dr Alfred Tomatis have become our main task.

Training is one of our chief aims. That is why, on a regular basis, we organise an initial training course both online and in person in Spanish, in order to pass on our know-how and expertise to new therapists. Over the years we have trained many specialists, which means that a good number of our current members never had the opportunity to meet Dr Alfred Tomatis in person.

We also offer continuing-education courses. These courses allow us to deepen our scientific heritage in the light of advances in neurology and audiology, while drawing on the knowledge of internationally renowned therapists. Periodically, we hold a seminar to which we invite some of them. Continuing education also enables us to review our practices as therapists, to exchange experiences and to deepen our knowledge in various aspects of our field.

Because our therapy requires highly sophisticated equipment, we strive to maintain the authenticity of our technical instruments by following Dr Alfred Tomatis’s guidelines. We have therefore relied on Christophe Besson to guarantee and keep this technology up to date. At present, we consider that the only “electronic ears” that meet the technical conditions capable of fulfilling the purpose of our therapy are those supplied to us by this direct collaborator of Dr Tomatis.

It is important to us, amid the clamour of new methods, therapies or unwarranted innovations, to have clear references on what our work is and on its fundamental guidelines and criteria. Being able to share these concerns with other therapists helps us, reassures us and encourages us in our endeavour.

The ALTOMTOMATIS association has ceased its activities and its website is now preserved as a historical archive. The transmission of the method continues today, in Spain, at audiopsicofonologia.es, where you can find us.

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Australia & New Zealand - APAAL

Auditory Training Practitioners Association (ATPA)

This association offers a training programme for psychologists, speech therapists, audiologists and occupational therapists, enabling them to become practitioners in the application of auditory-stimulation treatment. This training is delivered once a year and aims to support professionals working with paediatric populations, school-age children, young adults and adults presenting with auditory-processing and listening deficits.

The training is divided into 2 modules, the basic course and advanced techniques. The training protocol also teaches individuals to use current standardised auditory-processing assessments in conjunction with the assessments used by audio-psycho-phonologists, in order to improve and target the listening protocols of auditory training. The training team is made up of a psychologist, an audiologist and a speech therapist.

The association also offers supervision and ongoing learning through group discussions among therapists, and by reviewing current peer-reviewed research articles on relevant areas related to the auditory system and to auditory-processing deficits in developmental disorders. Members of the association are often invited to give presentations at conferences such as learning-differences conventions and school presentations on specific topics such as auditory-processing deficits in dyslexia, auditory attention and auditory-processing problems in ADD/ADHD and other areas.

The association aims to support its members, to raise consumer awareness of the auditory deficits that coexist in certain developmental disorders, and to establish processes that follow “best practice” by evaluating training outcomes through standardised assessments of auditory processing, auditory brainstem response and auditory evoked potentials using quantitative electroencephalography.