NMCCL audiologist recognized for efforts to conserve Marines’ hearing

CAMP LEJEUNE, North Carolina – Blast exposure is unavoidable for most Marines. One doctor in Camp Lejeune, North Carolina is working to outpace blast exposure before it leads to irreparable hearing loss.

“Marines, in particular, are exposed to a high level of noise and blasts as part of their job. That's what they do, and we're not going to make that go away, but if we can measure that and quantify it, we can mitigate that hearing loss,” said Dr. Jeffrey Russell, occupational audiologist for Naval Medical Center Camp Lejeune (NMCCL).

Russell has served as an occupational audiologist with NMCCL since 2011. His work has largely focused on preserving hearing capabilities of active duty who are exposed to higher levels of noise due to their daily jobs. Recently, Russell was named the Senior Audiologist of the Year for 2025 for the entirety of the Department of War.

“Being recognized as the Senior Audiologist of the Year highlights the important contributions Dr. Russell has made to military medicine over the past 15 years,” said Cmdr. Jolene Mancini, NMCCL department head for occupational audiology. “He is an exceptional community advocate, researcher, teacher and clinician, whose tireless efforts have directly and indirectly improved Marine and Navy Hearing Readiness.”

As Russell explains, his professional mission is to be a hearing conservationist, to prevent hearing loss for Marines and Sailors before it starts.

“It's much easier to prevent hearing loss than it is to cure hearing loss, because you can't cure hearing loss,” Russell explains. “Every Marine is a rifleman, so every Marine is noise exposed. That’s what I tell Marines - it’s not if [you lose your hearing], you will. You will unless you wear proper hearing protection.”

Russell treats Marines who often work in noisy environments with loud machinery, weapons, or vehicles. Marines can also be also exposed to high levels of noise during training or combat. For Russell, his vocation involves teaching Marines about the intricacies of the ear and impacts to their hearing.

The nominating letter for the award reads: “[Dr. Russell’s] unique and thorough understanding of the military population and their occupational noise exposures has been forged through a ‘boots on the ground’ approach.”

“Boots on the ground” means Russell is doing just that.

Russell spends days at time out in the field observing and studying how to better prevent hearing injuries. From artillery weapons, such as the M777 howitzer, or heavy machinery like a CH-53 [helicopter], Russell and his team are focused on measuring blast noise exposure and determining what equipment is needed to prevent or lessen sound breaching.

“I'll tell Marines. I'm not a weapons expert. I'm a noise expert, but what I know about weapons, I've learned from Marines,” Russell said.

Russell’s research into “blast overpressure” – the impact of pressure waves from explosions) – has garnered the attention of Marine Corps leadership and the Defense Health Agency’s (DHA) Hearing Center of Excellence. According to Russell, talks with leadership have resulted in instituting suppression on rifles, acquiring noise level-dependent hearing protection, such as amplified earmuffs for infantry, and even using rocket system simulators which offers training without the blast exposure.

As Russell explains, troops must remain ready, not compromising in lethality or survivability, but they do not have to suffer hearing injuries as a result of their warfighter duties.

“Marines don’t know the severity of the noise they’re being exposed to. We are meeting them where they are and seeing what they're exposed to and the efficacy of the hearing protection they’re using,” Russel says. “From research, we’ve developed a catalog of noise and blast exposure and the hearing protection needed accordingly. Marines can look and say – I’m around this, and if it’s this loud, this is how much hearing protection I may need.”

For Russell, the inspiration to pursue occupational audiology is personal, having suffered hearing loss and tinnitus himself. Troubleshooting his own hearing loss drew him to the profession.

“If you look at the inner ear, the design of it is exquisite, and it can't be engineered by humans. That’s the thing I’m most proud of – translating the knowledge and research into something our patients, a Marine or a Sailor, understands. I have ways of explaining [the ear] to military so they go, ‘Okay, I get it now.’ Before, it was just numbers on a paper.”

This is not the first accolade of its kind for Russell. In 2018, he was selected as the Navy’s Civilian Audiologist of the Year. The Occupational Audiology Department is part of the Public Health Directorate at NMCCL. The medical center has provided more than 80 years of dedicated, passionate care for warfighters and beneficiaries at Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.