Six Loyola University Medical Center audiologists recently teamed up with the Chicago Bears to provide hearing screenings to more than 150 disadvantaged children and their parents.
The Loyola audiologists were members of the "EarQ" team that also included audiologists from three other centers. In addition to offering free screenings, the audiologists answered questions about hearing health and advanced hearing technology.
The audiologists performed screenings during a back-to-school health fair July 27th at Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais. The health fair was sponsored by Bears Care, the Chicago Bears' charitable organization.
"Maintaining hearing health is especially critical for school children during their developmental years, but is often overlooked," said Candace Blank, AuD, manager of Loyola Audiology. "Undiagnosed hearing loss, whether temporary due to ear infections or permanent, can be a contributing factor to learning difficulties in the classroom."
Other Loyola audiologists who participated in the health fair are Melissa Welch, AuD; Stefanie Allen, MS; Kyle Raterman, AuD; JoAnn Harano, AuD and graduate student Adriana Russ, MS.
Other hearing centers that participated in the Bears Care health fair are Sertoma Speech and Hearing Center, the Hearing Rehabilitation Center and Waterford Hearing.
More than 36 million Americans have hearing loss, including one in five teenagers, according to recent studies. Untreated, hearing loss can inhibit social interaction and a person's ability to perform daily activities, which can lead to withdrawal, isolation, depression and an increased risk of heart disease. But only about 20 percent of people with hearing loss use a hearing device.
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