Better Speech and Hearing Month

Coastal Hearing & Balance Center Joins Better Hearing and Speech Council in Promoting Across America Hearing Check Challenge during Better Speech and Hearing Month

May 1 marks the start of Better Hearing and Speech Month, a month dedicated to educating consumers about the need to assure that their hearing is healthy. This year, Coastal Hearing & Balance Center is joining the Better Hearing and Speech Council (BHSC) in promoting the Across America Hearing Check Challenge (www.hearingcheck.org)–an online hearing test that lets individuals quickly and confidentially determine if they need a comprehensive hearing check by a hearing professional. Coastal Hearing & Balance Center is urging everyone to rise to the challenge, visit www.hearingcheck.org, and walk through a simple, 15-question self-screener in the privacy of their own homes.
“We know that unaddressed hearing loss seriously undercuts a person’s quality of life and has a tremendous impact on relationships,” says Suzanne McCorry, a hearing health professional in Neptune, NJ. “We see it every day in our practice and hear it from our patients and their concerned family members and friends.
“We also know that too many people wait years, even decades, before getting treatment—either unaware of the extent of their hearing loss or too afraid to confront it—losing out on so much. That’s why Coastal Hearing & Balance Center is so excited about this updated, simple, and interactive screening check that couples, families, and anyone else can use in the comfort and privacy of their own homes. By visiting www.hearingcheck.org, members of our community can take the first, most critical step in reclaiming their hearing—and their quality of life. And when they’re ready to take that next step—and get a professional assessment—we’re here and ready to help.”
The signs of hearing loss can be subtle and emerge slowly, or they can be significant and come on suddenly. Either way, there are common indications. Symptoms of hearing loss include not being able to hear well in a crowded room or restaurant, having trouble hearing children and women, keeping the television or radio turned up to a high volume, needing to ask friends to repeat what they're saying, or experiencing ringing in the ears.
“Research shows that hearing health affects everything from job performance and income to personal relationships,” says Sergei Kochkin, PhD, executive director of the Better Hearing Institute and a leading member of the BHSC. “Increasingly, research shows a correlation between hearing loss and other chronic medical conditions including diabetes, heart disease, chronic kidney disease, and Alzheimer’s.”
During Better Hearing and Speech Month, Coastal Hearing & Balance Center also is warning people of the financial dangers of leaving hearing loss unaddressed. People with untreated hearing loss lose as much as $30,000 in income annually, depending on their degree of hearing loss. The cost to society is estimated at $26 billion each year in unrealized federal taxes. To those with unaided hearing loss, the yearly cost is estimated at $176 billion. However, in a recent BHI study, the use of hearing aids was shown to reduce the risk of income loss by 90 to 100 percent for those with milder hearing loss, and from 65 to 77 percent for those with severe to moderate hearing loss. What’s more, hearing aid use was shown to reduce unemployment among hearing aid users.
“Most people don’t have to suffer the consequences of unaddressed hearing loss,” says Dr. McCorry. “Hearing loss can be easily diagnosed, and there are modern-day solutions that can help people hear better. Simply by getting their hearing checked and addressing their hearing loss, people in our community can reclaim their quality of life. We hope that many in our community will visit www.hearingcheck.org as well as www.coastalearnoseandthroat.com during Better Hearing and Speech Month.”
More About Hearing Loss and Hearing Aids
Numerous studies have linked untreated hearing loss to a wide range of physical and emotional conditions, including impaired memory and ability to learn new tasks, reduced alertness, and increased risk to personal safety, irritability, negativism, anger, fatigue, tension, stress, depression, and diminished psychological and overall health. But nine out of ten hearing aid users report improvements in their quality of life.

Advances in digital technology have dramatically improved hearing aids in recent years, making them smaller with better sound quality. Designs are modern, sleek, and discreet. Clarity, greater directionality, better speech audibility in a variety of environments, better cell phone compatibility, less whistling and feedback then hearing aids of the past, and greater ruggedness for active lifestyles are common features.

Suzanne McCorry is a Dr. of Audiology at Coastal Hearing and Balance Center in Neptune, NJ, and can be contacted 732-280-7855; sbmccorry@coastalhearing.com; www.coastalhearing.com
The Better Hearing and Speech Council is a coalition of national and local organizations dedicated to promoting high quality hearing health and hearing healthcare for all residents of the United States. For more information, visit www.BHScouncil.org

National Better Speech and Hearing

Millions of Americans of all ages and from all walks of life suffer from some degree of hearing loss. Early detection can save valuable treatment time and enhance language development for babies and young children. Early testing can also help prevent a child’s hearing impairment from being mislabeled later as a learning disorder.

For teenagers and young adults, identification of a hearing problem can improve academic performance and social interaction.

For adults and the elderly, a proper hearing evaluation can increase confidence in communication with friends, family and colleagues.

If you notice signs of hearing loss, make an appointment to see an audiologist at Coastal Hearing and Balance Center (732-280-7855). A simple hearing test can determine the type and severity of hearing loss you may have.

Please visit our website at www.coastalhearing.com for more information on healthy hearing.
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Suzanne McCorry is Director of Audiology at Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat in Neptune, NJ and can be contacted at 732-280-7855; sbmccorry@coastalhearing.com; http://www.coastalhearing.com

Medical Billing Office Manager Position Available

Our practice is rapidly expanding and we are seeking a highly experienced Manager to complete our billing team. Candidates should have a deep understanding of insurance reimbursement procedures and strategies. We are looking for a bright, energetic, leader who knows how to get the best out of their staff and maintain good relations with patients and payors. Certified coder is a plus. We are looking for the best of the best! Responsibilities include analyzing accounts receivable reports, weekly and monthly financial reports, negotiating insurance contracts, Credentialing, supervising employees and developing effective work flow and reimbursement operations. We pride ourselves on being up to date with all Health Information Technologies. Applicants should be forward thinking, in the know and on the look out for new technological enhancements and applications. Coastal ENT offers competitive pay, health insurance, and 401K for full-time employees. We are proud to provide an excellent work environment and family atmosphere. Our practice is growing and we need career-minded professionals to grow with us. Interested? Forward us your resume and salary requirements to ljhanson@coastalhearing.com. We look forward to hearing from you. Check us out on the web, http://www.coastalearnoseandthroat.com/ and http://www.coastalhearing.com/

Movie Captioning Access Update

Deaf and hard-of-hearing people who have a hard time understanding dialogue at the movies benefit from closed captioning in a movie theater. Closed captioning technology for movie theaters allows hearing impaired patrons to read the movie dialogue as captions. The entire audience does not see the captions; only the patrons with the captioning device see the words. The reflectors are available at the theater's customer service desk. It can be very frustrating to miss that critical plot twist because you didn’t hear all of the words. How does the technology work? A captioning device displays reversed captions on an LED text display which is mounted in the rear of a theater. Deaf and hard-of-hearing patrons use transparent acrylic panels attached to their seats to reflect the captions so that they appear superimposed on the movie screen. The reflective panels are portable and adjustable, enabling the caption user to sit anywhere in the theater. Recently, there have been two major court rulings in movie captioning access. On April 30, 2010, a unanimous, three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requires closed-captioning access in movie theaters. This is the second time a federal court has ruled that the ADA requires some captioning access (a federal court in Washington, D.C., ruled this way in 2004), and the first time that a federal court of appeals has ruled this way, overturning a lower court decision. Many theaters across the country already offer closed-captioning systems. In New Jersey in September 2004, the Attorney General’s Office and the Division on Civil Rights reached voluntary settlement agreements with four major multiplex theater chains operating in New Jersey regarding the installation of new deaf captioning technology. Under terms of the settlement agreements, American Multi Cinema (AMC), Loews Cineplex Theaters, Clearview Cinemas and National Amusements agreed to either equip their theaters with new captioning technology or, in multiplexes where the technology was already installed, to expand the number of screens offering such captioning. Please visit our website at http://www.coastalhearing.com/under helpful links to take the Better Hearing Institute hearing test. # # # Dr. Suzanne McCorry is Director of Audiology at Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat in Neptune, NJ and can be contacted at 732-280-7855; sbmccorry@coastalhearing.com; http://www.coastalhearing.com/

Coastal Ear Nose Throat

Dr. Fuchs Joins Coastal

Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat is proud to announce Tara L. Fuchs has joined the staff of Coastal Hearing and Balance Center Dr. Fuchs is a hearing-health professional with an audiologic career that spans over a decade. Dr. Fuchs earned her Master of Arts in Audiology from The College of New Jersey in 1997 followed by her Doctorate in Audiology from the University of Florida in 2003. During Dr. Fuch’s audiology tenure, she also became a member of both the American Academy of Audiology and the NJ Association of Hearing Health Professionals. She has spent time working as an Adjunct Professor at The College of New Jersey to help educate the next generation of hearing-health professionals. As both an industrial and clinical audiologist, Dr. Fuch’s professional experience spans from pediatric through geriatric patients.

Please visit our website at http://www.coastalhearing.com/for more information on healthy hearing.

Dr. McCorry is Director of Audiology at Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat in Neptune, NJ and can be contacted at 732-280-7855; sbmccorry@coastalhearing.com; http://www.coastalhearing.com/

Hearing Loss

What are the primary causes of hearing loss?

Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat along with Healthy Hearing would like to educate the public on the primary causes of hearing loss.

There are three types of hearing loss: conductive, sensorineural and mixed hearing loss, all of which have different causes.

Conductive hearing loss is caused by issues with the middle ear such as fluid in the middle ear space or issues with the middle ear bones. Many types of conductive hearing loss are not permanent and can be treated by medical intervention. A full hearing evaluation followed with a medical evaluation by an ear physician will help to determine the cause of the conductive hearing loss. Once the cause is identified, the physician will recommend medical treatment.

Most causes of sensorineural (nerve) hearing loss are never known; however, through a hearing evaluation and medical evaluation, various causes of hearing loss can be suspected based on the outcome of the evaluations. The most common causes of sensorineural hearing loss are genetics, aging and noise exposure. Medications, diseases associated with small vessel disease, arthritis, diabetes, and heart disease are all associated with a higher incidence of hearing loss.

Recent studies have also found persons who smoke increase their probability of having hearing loss. Finally, high levels of blood lipids and cholesterol have been associated with an increased incidence of hearing loss, possibly through the promotion of small vessel disease.

Currently, noise-induced hearing loss is the only type of hearing loss that can be fully prevented by the use of ear protection. Noise induced hearing loss may be caused by a single exposure to excessive noise or from many years of being exposed to loud levels of noise.

Mixed hearing loss is a combination of conductive and sensorineural hearing loss, and is caused by the previously mentioned causes.

Unfortunately, even if you live healthy and take all precautions possible, the majority of us will slowly develop hearing loss due to the natural aging process. The inner ear hair cells do not replace themselves and once they are lost, their function is not recovered.

Recent studies have found high doses of antioxidants may be associated with the prevention of noise induced hearing loss. Other studies have shown a diet rich in folates may also help prevent hearing loss by up to 20% (2009, AOO-HNSF); however, further research is needed.

Joanne Slater M.S. CCC-A. Copyright 2009, www.HealthyHearing.com - The leading web resource on hearing loss and hearing aids. This article was reprinted with permission. Article Source: http://www.healthyhearing.com

Please visit our website at www.coastalhearing.com for more information on healthy hearing.
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Suzanne McCorry is Director of Audiology at Coastal Ear, Nose and Throat in Neptune, NJ and can be contacted at 732-280-7855; sbmccorry@coastalhearing.com; http://www.coastalhearing.com