Audiology Department
Hearing loss can affect a person at any age. Approximately 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, making it one of the country’s most common chronic health conditions. About 90% of all hearing loss can be helped with hearing aids, while most of the remaining 10% can be treated with medical intervention.
The Audiology Department at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital offers a wide range of diagnostic and rehabilitative services for individuals with hearing impairments. Our services include comprehensive hearing evaluations using the latest diagnostic tools to assess various types of hearing loss, along with hearing aid consultations offering the most advanced hearing aid technology. Our dedicated staff of Audiologists is committed to providing the highest level of hearing health care and will work with individuals and family members to minimize the impact that hearing loss has on communication. For those individuals with certain types of hearing loss, a consultation is available with an Otolaryngologist ( a physician specializing in the medical treatment of Ear, Nose, and Throat Disorders ).
For more information about Audiology services or to schedule an appointment, please contact the Audiology Department at: 781-348-2209 or TDD: 781-843-9021.
Locations: South Shore: Braintree
Questions to Ask Yourself:
- Are you (or someone you know) a hearing aid user who still experiences problems in difficult listening situations?
- Have you or someone you know been told hearing aids will not help, but still experience communication difficulties?
- Do you want to learn more about hearing, hearing loss and how to improve your ability to cope in adverse listening situations?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, the Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital's Aural Rehabilitation Program may interest you!
Hearing Loss/ Symptoms & Causes
Hearing loss can affect a person of any age. Approximately 28 million Americans have some degree of hearing loss, making it one of this country's most common chronic health conditions. About 90% of all hearing loss can be helped with hearing aids, while most of the remaining 10% can be treated with medical intervention.
Symptoms
- The speech of others appears mumbled or slurred
- Tinnitus (hissing, roaring or ringing)in one or both ears
- Frequently asking people to repeat themselves
- Difficulty hearing the television or radio at a normal volume
- Problems understanding conversations, especially when there is background noise
Causes
- Heredity
- Exposures to high levels of noise
- Chronic ear infections
- Viral or bacterial infections
- Aging
- Birth defects
- Head injuries
- Exposure to certain medications
If a hearing loss is suspected, a consultation should be scheduled with one of our Audiologists. An Audiologist is a hearing health professional who is trained to identify and rehabilitate hearing impairments. The staff in the Audiology Department at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital has over 20 years of experience and is dedicated to providing the highest level of hearing health care. Our Audiologists are licensed by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. Consultation with an Otolaryngologist, a physician specializing in the medical and surgical treatment of Ear, Nose and Throat disorders, may also be appropriate for the diagnosis and treatment of certain types of hearing loss.
Comprehensive Hearing Evaluations: Audiological testing is available for persons of all ages to determine the type and degree of hearing loss, including diagnostic tests to assess middle ear and cochlear function.
Auditory Brain Stem Response Assessments (ABR) Testing and Electronystagmography (ENG): State-of-the-art diagnostic procedures to objectively evaluate the auditory brain stem nervous system and vestibular function.
Hearing Aid Program: Hearing aid fittings and consultations are available with the most advanced hearing aid technology including digital, programmable, and analog sound processing. Automatic features are available to ensure comfortable listening in noise and for telephone use. Our team of audiologists have the expertise to select the most appropriate hearing aids to meet an individual's communication needs in a variety of listening situations. All of our hearing aids are offered with a 2 year warranty and are available with a 60 day adjustment period. In addition to hearing aids, assistive listening devices are available using infrared and frequency modulated (FM) technology to maximize listening under even the most difficult listening environments. Assistive listening devices are useful to enhance auditory skills in a variety of listening situations such as during business meetings, conferences, television viewing, and at Church.
Aural Rehabilitation Program: The Aural Rehabilitation Program is designed to provide adults with hearing loss and their communication partners, effective strategies to improve communication skills in social and work situations. This program will provide specific information on the impact that hearing loss has on everyday listening environments. Individuals with hearing loss and family members will learn new strategies to cope with difficult listening situations and ways to resolve breakdowns in everyday communication.
Program Goals:
- To provide information about various types of hearing impairment and the emotional impact hearing loss has on communication.
- To teach appropriate listening strategies to improve success in communication.
- To teach speech reading skills that allow individuals to use visual cues (i.e. lip movements, facial expression, and body gestures) to supplement auditory information.
- To provide information about new technology in hearing aids and assistive listening devices for communication, TV, and lectures.
- To teach strategies to reduce the interference of background noise and ways to adapt the environment to create the best possible listening situation.
The Program meets on a weekly basis. Each session runs for six weeks and there is no charge to enroll in this program. To register for the next session, or for more information about this program, please contact the Audiology Department at 781-348-2209 or TDD: 781-843-9021.
Consulations are available with an Otolaryngologist (a physician specializing in the diagnosis and medical treatment of Ear, Nose, and Throat disorders.
Carol T. Norod, Au.D. is the Director of the Audiology Department at Braintree Rehabilitation Hospital. She holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology and a Massachusetts State Licensure. Dr. Norod has been specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of auditory disorders in pediatrics for over 20 years and has held clinical positions at Brigham and Women's Hospital and the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary. She received her Bachelor Degree at Boston College and her Master and Doctorate Degrees from the University of Florida.
Sanita D'Souza, MS, MA holds a Masters in Audiology from Northeastern University and a Masters in Speech Language Pathology from Ohio University; a Massachusetts State Licensure and Certificate of Clinical Competence in both fields. Special interest in Pediatric Disorders and Central Auditory Processing evaluations and rehabilitation. Basic Fluency in American Sign Language and Hindi.
Kristy L. Lamoureux, Au.D. received a Doctor of Audiology degree from the University of Rhode Island and a Bachelor's degree in Communication Sciences from the University of Vermont. She holds the Certificate of Clinical Competence in Audiology and is a Massachusetts Licensed Clinical Audiologist. Her clinical experiences have been in diagnostic assessments of the pediatric and adult populations with special interests in advanced hearing aid technology and aural rehabilitation.
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