Following a hearing loss diagnosis by your child's audiologist, it is important to talk with their primary care provider about other specialists they may need to see for ongoing monitoring.
Be sure to request specialists who have experience working with families, infants and young children. All notes and reports should be shared among their primary care provider and specialists to ensure each professional has the same information and can treat your child effectively.
Learn more about the different providers you may meet along the way:
- Teach families how best to help their deaf and hard of hearing child learn and communicate during the early years of life
- Provides services in your home and other comfortable spaces to learn and grow
- Helps reduce potential developmental delays that can occur
- Check ears for fluid, wax, physical issues
- Provide medical clearance for hearing aid use
- Recommend additional testing to assess ear structures
- Perform ear surgeries, including cochlear implant surgery
- Test and treat vision or eye disorders
- About 20% of children with sensorineural hearing loss also have vision problems
- Discuss genetic and non-genetic causes of hearing loss
- Help you decide whether you want to pursue genetic testing
- About 50% of infant hearing loss is related to genetics
- Diagnose hearing loss and monitor hearing sensitivity
- Fit, program and check hearing aids and/or cochlear implants
- Monitor ongoing hearing difference and provide support and information
- Evaluate and treat speech and language disorders
- Assist in development of auditory skills
- Provide emotional support for children and families
- Many families want to process their thoughts and feelings after their child is identified with hearing loss