Hearing for the Whole World

RePosted from http://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/article_07844ae9-3da3-5147-8435-1588be987c10.html?print=1
Local doctor providing hearing aids to people in Ghana

Special to the Daily Herald
Posted: Friday, August 19, 2011 12:06 am

The ability to hear is something many people take for granted. But without it, communication can be very difficult.

And in a country like Ghana, a person with hearing loss can have a hard time finding employment. Those who can't find work often live in desperate poverty.

Dr. Layne M. Garrett, an audiologist at Timpanogos Hearing and Balance, has given the gift of improved hearing to hundreds of people in Ghana, from the capital city of Accra to tiny villages across the country.

Garrett says most of the hearing loss he encounters in Ghana comes from genetic factors or diseases like malaria. He has traveled to Ghana three times since 2005, and has another trip planned for November. He estimates that his team of audiologists, medical doctors, nurses, educators, and support staff has fit about 3,000 needy folks with hearing aids. The hearing aids are donated to Timpanogos Hearing and Balance, and are sometimes refurbished before being taken to Ghana.

In addition to the difficulties of finding employment, a person with hearing loss can often be physically at risk if they are unable to hear an approaching vehicle or a smoke detector, for example. Hearing loss can reduce people's ability to communicate with and understand others, straining relationships and leading to problems like depression, isolation, and withdrawal.

Garrett remembers one small boy, about 3 years old, in Ghana in 2005. The boy's family knew he couldn't hear, so they brought him to Garrett's clinic, where the boy was fitted with a hearing aid.

"Watching his face light up the minute he was able to hear his mother's voice was just an incredible thing," Garrett recalls.

Garrett doesn't confine his humanitarian work to overseas. During the Christmas season, Timpanogos Hearing and Balance operates a program to fit local people with hearing aids on a charitable basis. The office is currently accepting nominations on its website, utahhearingaids.com.

"Being able to help people, whether they're there or here, makes the experience worthwhile," Garrett says.

Matt Lauer's Hearing Test

Great story on the increasing prevalence of hearing loss, the process of having your hearing tested, and the options for treatment.  Thanks, Matt Lauer!

Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy

We're on T.V.!

Here's the YouTube video produced by Spanish Fork Channel 17 of our Grand Opening.  Thank you Spanish Fork Chamber of Commerce!

Interesting Facts About Hearing.

The world is filled with many interesting facts.  Here are a few interesting ones about our miraculous ears.

1.The roar that we hear when we place a seashell next to our ear is not the ocean, but rather the sound of blood surging through the veins in the ear.

2.Wearing headphones for just an hour will increase the bacteria in your ear by 700 times.

3.The ears of a cricket are located on the front legs, just below the knee.

4.A giraffe can clean its ears with its 21-inch tongue.

5.Most people associate ears with hearing and sound but don’t realize that the inner ear helps them to have good balance as they walk and run as well.

6.The smallest bone found in the human body is located in the middle ear and is only 2.8 millimetres long. It is also commonly known as the hammer, anvil and stirrup and collectively all three bones can fit together on a penny.

7.Animals hear better than humans, especially dogs who can hear at much higher frequency than humans.

8.When you go up to a high elevation, your ears pop.  This is because your Eustacion tubes are equalizing the pressure between the outside air and that inside your ear.

9.The ear continues to hear sounds, even while you sleep.

10.Fish do not have any ears but they can hear by the changes of pressure through the ridges on their body.

11.Snakes can hear through their jaw bone and through a traditional inner ear. In essence, snakes have two types of hearing mechanisms, which also helps them hear and catch prey.

12.Sitting in front of the speakers at a pop or rock concert can expose you to 120 decibels, which will begin to damage hearing after only seven and a half minutes.

13.Thirty-seven percent of children who have a minimal hearing loss will fail at least one grade.

14.Male mosquitoes hear with thousands of tiny hairs that grow on their antennae.

Free Money!

In celebration of the Grand Opening of our new Spanish Fork office, for a limited time, we are QUADRUPLING our referral bonus.  That's right.  If you refer a friend, family member, or anyone else into our office and that person purchases hearing technology, we will send you:

*

Your referral will also get a free consultation with one of our AudigyCertified audiologists, as well as $1000 off of their technology purchase.  You don't have to be one of our patients to take advantage of this offer.  Just make sure that the person you are referring mentions your name (or call us yourself and let us know.) 

This offer is for a limited time and is simply our way of thanking those who let their friends and family members know where they can receive the best hearing care in the state of Utah!  Call our American Fork office at 801-770-0801 or our Spanish Fork office at 801-853-8153 for more details or to make an appointment.

(*Thank you amount will be given on an American Express gift card.)

Grand Opening!

The ribbon is cut and we are now officially open in Spanish Fork.  Thank you so much to the wonderful Spanish Fork / Salem Chamber of Commerce for helping us to get this fun event set up.  Here are a few pictures:

Cutting the Ribbon-- thank you to family, old friends and new friends for your support!

Thank you to Sam's Club for a delicious cake!

Here's Kim, Dr. Garrett, and Dr. Forsey being interviewed for Spanish Fork Channel 17 News.

Inside the reception area of the new office.

Thank you everyone!  We look forward to seeing you soon at one of our two locations!

Timpanogos Hearing & Balance Now Open in Spanish Fork!

We are pleased to announce the Grand Opening of the new Spanish Fork Branch of Timpanogos Hearing & Balance located at 642 East Kirby Lane, #102!  Phone number: 801-798-7210. (We are in the same parking lot as Wingers on Highway 6)

We are officially open for business in that location, but our official Grand Opening Ceremony will be Thursday, July 14th at 12:00 pm.  We will have local television coverage, refreshments, gifts, and more!  We'd love to see you there!

This office, like our office in American Fork is an Audigy Certified, full-service hearing and balance clinic serving the people of Southern Utah County.  We provide:

• Comprehensive hearing evaluations for all ages
• Sales and service for all major brands of hearing technology
• Tinnitus (ringing in the ears) evaluation and treatment
• Balance evaluation and treatment
• Ear plugs and hearing loss prevention
• Ear wax removal and management
• All insurance plans accepted

Please join us for our special event or stop in to say hi and to see the new office!


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