It started as marriages sometimes do. They met at work and instantly connected. Others would notice the chemistry and ask how long they'd known one another, and the two would laugh and say, "Only a week" and then "Only a month." Soon it was years, and as the time passed, they grew closer and their goals aligned. Then, one day over dinner, a proposal was made and, just a few months later, they were taking the plunge together.

Almost four years have passed since then and, in that time, Mindy Brudereck, AuD, and Bre Myers, AuD, have firmly established their jointly-owned practice, Berks Hearing Professionals in Elverson, PA, as a center of excellence in hearing and vestibular care.

"I feel often like we're married," muses Dr. Brudereck. "We joke that she's my work wife from time to time. And it does feel that way. You go into this relationship just like you would any other important relationship in your life. It has to be someone that you're going to work with for an extended period of time. We've kind of learned how to work around each other's idiosyncrasies and we're not catty with each other. It's a working relationship but, at the same time, it's a personal relationship, and it's made all of this a lot easier."

Stepping into Practice

Drs. Brudereck and Myers formed a quick friendship working together at an ear, nose and throat clinic in Exton, PA, while both simultaneously studied for their AuD degrees via distance education at the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (PCO), now Salus University. As the completion of her AuD approached, Dr. Myers, restless with work in the ENT office, began setting her sights on practice ownership.

"I was completely inspired by my AuD experience and hearing all the stories and attending the national conferences every year,'" Dr. Myers says. "I didn't want to be treated as a technician. It's not bad working for someone, but if they're treating you like a technician. that was a no-go for me. I need more autonomy."

Dr. Brudereck had similar feelings and, after talking things over at dinner, the two were meeting with lawyers and accountants and looking for office space. The search didn't last long-they chose to rent in the first and only place they looked at-a 300-year-old farmhouse that, during its storied history, also had served as a bar and a veterinary office. Currently, it houses Berks Hearing Professionals, two other businesses and a few apartments.

"It has been an excellent location for us and fits our personalities perfectly. It makes us and our patients feel at home," Dr. Brudereck says. "Because it is a 300-year-old farmhouse, if you are familiar with the area at all, you have seen our building and know it as soon as we describe it, which has certainly been helpful."

With an office in place, they opened Berks Hearing Professionals in September 2006. It was definitely slow at the beginning, but they were in it together, which helped both audiologists get through the transition phase.

"It's a huge leap. It was very nerve-wracking. Lots of sleepless nights-you know, 'Is this really what I want to do?'" Dr. Myers says. "That's the importance of having a partner-you're not alone. I can fall back on Mindy and when I'm having those doubtful days she's there to back me up, and vice versa. When she's having those moments of 'What did we get into?' I'm kind of there to pull her through and say, 'No, we're doing this. We got it.' So it's a good balancing act."

Perfecting the Partnership

Drs. Brudereck and Myers have developed a pretty efficient system that sees each of them filling specific roles in the practice so that they aren't tripping over one another. Dr. Myers predominantly handles vestibular issues and pediatrics, while Dr. Brudereck handles auditory processing testing and adults.

"We've both kind of taken on our own little niches within audiology," Dr. Brudereck says. "If I have a patient who's having vestibular issues, I will guide them toward Dr. Myers and let them know I can do it, but I'll probably end up asking her in the end. I know she does the same thing with auditory processing; she can do the testing but in the end she's probably going to consult me anyway, so we might as well let the other person do that test."

"Having this private practice with the clinical side of it, we wanted to be able to provide almost every aspect of audiology in one place," Dr. Myers adds. "Splitting it up so that we both devote our time to certain things has enabled us to be better focused and really provide excellent services."

Drs. Brudereck and Myers also have split up other tasks, such as finance, marketing and public relations. However, they also can trust one another to provide care for their individual patients if need be-as is sometimes the case since only one of them is in the office at a given time.

Teaching on the Side

When they first opened their practice, Drs. Brudereck and Myers knew they would need second jobs until it took off. For two years, Dr. Myers continued to work for the ENT office as an independent contractor, while Dr. Brudereck, at the behest of George S. Osborne, PhD, DDS, founder of the PCO AuD program, took a job as an admissions recruiter for PCO's school of audiology.

While working in this role, Dr. Brudereck became intrigued by teaching, and ultimately she accepted a position teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in the communicative disorders department at West Chester University.

"I love teaching undergrads," she says, noting that she often provides students with their first exposure to audiology. "Most of them have been going through speech pathology for four years, and suddenly I'm bringing in a different career path. For some of them, it doesn't change their mind, but I've had a few students say, 'This is totally eye-opening; I would love to join a career in audiology.' I love when I'm able to show a student a new career and tell them what I love about audiology."

Around the same time, Dr. Myers also navigated to teaching, returning to Salus to teach vestibular and electrophysiology classes as an adjunct professor.

"I love the exchange of ideas," Dr. Myers says. "I love it when a student asks me a question and actually makes me stop and think. It really makes me a better clinician through going back and reviewing and staying current with all of the changes that are happening in the field."

This summer, Dr. Brudereck also began teaching classes at Salus.

Due to the flexibility of class scheduling, teaching has been an ideal second job for both Drs. Brudereck and Myers, as it has enabled them to devise a schedule that always has one of them in the office every day. However, what started as a temporary arrangement until Berks Hearing Professionals found legs has become something a bit more permanent.

"We've said from the beginning that the practice is the priority. Teaching is secondary, but we're so passionate about it that we're not really headed to step out of it either. We love teaching; it would be hard to step away."

Taking a Leadership Role

In addition to teaching, Drs. Brudereck and Myers have both made conscious decisions to become active leaders in a variety of audiology associations.

Dr. Brudereck currently serves in a variety of positions, the most active of which is 2010 convention chair for the Pennsylvania Academy of Audiology (PAA). She also recently was elected vice president of professional issues for PAA, after serving a two-year term as the organization's treasurer.

"The more active we are, we can actually make a change and we can become the doctoring profession that we all hope to see," Dr. Brudereck says. "That's not going to happen by sitting back and watching other people do it."

Meanwhile, Dr. Myers currently serves as secretary of the PAA board of directors and is a member of the American Academy of Audiology Political Action Committee.

Referring to the professionals who founded AAA 20 years ago, she says she and Dr. Brudereck feel a responsibility to carry on what they started. "Here are these people who just went out on a limb and didn't do what was status quo," she describes. "They put themselves in that position for change, and that's what I want to see."

Importance of Diversity

Drs. Brudereck and Myers indicate they are happy with their current setup, excluding, perhaps, the ironic fact that their busy schedules prohibit them from seeing each other as much as they did before they owned a practice together.

Because of their partnership, both women have been able to diversify their positions in the field, which they say has ultimately benefited Berks Hearing Professionals.

"I tell my students and I tell my family this as well: What other field am I able to on Monday teach a class about balance assessment, then Tuesdays work in a clinic and see veterans and work with students and then Wednesdays and Thursdays come back and see my patients?" Dr. Myers says. "The diversity, it really keeps me up to date. I'm not doing a monotonous job, and that's important to me."

"I think it keeps us both on top of our games," Dr. Brudereck adds. "I think by giving ourselves other avenues to grow through, we're able to bring that back to the practice."

Frank Visco was formerly assistant editor of ADVANCE for Audiologists.