The ENT Center of Austin offers a host of audiology services to our patients:
- Comprehensive Hearing Tests - pure tone air and bone conduction, and behavioral testing to determine the degree and type of hearing loss
- Otoacoustic Emission Testing - to detect cochlear damage
- Admittance Testing - for evaluation of middle ear function
- Hearing Aid Evaluation and Selection - an in depth look at your hearing loss, lifestyle, and amplification options to decide what would work best for the patient
- Hearing Aid Fitting and Follow Up Programming - fitting and programming of a patient’s hearing aid(s) to adjust for the best sound quality possible through amplification
- Custom fit Ear Pieces - custom ear pieces such as ear molds for amplification, ear plugs, swim plugs, and musician’s plugs
For more information on hearing loss including types, causes, effects, and prevalence, visit the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) website. There is also a great self assessment listed on their site to help you determine if you may have a hearing impairment: www.asha.org/public/hearing/disorders. You can also find additional audiology resources on our Links page.
Hearing Aids
Today’s small, digital hearing aids are able to amplify the sounds you want to hear while reducing the sounds you don’t. They can switch between programs automatically when you walk from a quiet car into a noisy restaurant. The Better Hearing Institute found that 95% of people with hearing loss can be helped with today’s advanced hearing aids.*
Following a thorough hearing consultation, we will assist you in selecting the appropriate hearing solution that will work best for you, based on the degree of hearing loss and the types of listening situations that are a part of your daily life.
*See www.betterhearinginstitute.com for full statistics
Insurance Coverage and Payment of Hearing Aids
Unfortunately, there are very few insurance companies that will cover hearing instruments. It is because of this that our office policy is that we do not submit to insurance companies for hearing aid benefits. You will be responsible for paying us the full price of the hearing instruments. If you do have insurance that will cover hearing aids it will be your responsibility to file for reimbursement. We do carry a range of hearing instruments to fit every budget. We use Care Credit and are willing to work through them to offer payment plans if necessary.
Bio
Dr. Jill Mendez received her Bachelor's Degree and Doctorate of Audiology from the University of Cincinnati in Ohio. She completed her clinical fellowship in Phoenix, Arizona specializing in hearing aids, cochlear implants, vestibular testing, and evoked potentials. After completing her Doctorate, Dr. Mendez was the Director of Audiology at Arizona Ear Center where she continued work in cochlear implants, BAHA, and hearing aids for children and adults. She moved to Texas in 2009 where she received extensive experience with hearing aids in the private practice setting. Dr. Mendez is a fellow of the American Academy of Audiology and maintains membership to the Texas Academy of Audiology.
