New Audiology Clinic Open for Public Appointments
LONGMEADOW — Willie Ross School for the Deaf (WRSD) announced that its Curtis L. Blake Center for Audiological Services, housed at the school’s Longmeadow campus, is open to the general public for pediatric and adult patients starting this month. The school also announced the hiring of its new clinical audiologist, Kathryn Siu.
The new center offers state-of-the-art equipment and services to pediatric and adult patients, including diagnostic hearing evaluations; hearing-aid consultation, fittings, and orientation; hearing-aid adjustments, cleanings, and repairs; and management of cochlear implants.
Siu recently earned her doctor of audiology degree from Washington University in St. Louis. She also holds a bachelor of health science degree with a concentration in communication disorders from Stockton University. Earlier this year, she completed her fourth-year externship at the American School for the Deaf.
“My experience working at the American School for the Deaf affirmed my passion to serve deaf and hard-of-hearing populations,” Siu said. “I value the importance of treating the whole person and meeting the families where they are in their journey with hearing loss. I am motivated to serve the special-needs population and to alleviate hearing healthcare disparities that exist within our communities.”
WRSD’s Curtis L. Blake Center is housed in the school’s newly built administration building at 32 Norway St. in Longmeadow. The clinic is open to the public for audiological services, and appointments can be made by calling (413) 567-0374.
As a result of significant grant funding from the MassHealth Provider Access Improvement Program and Health Resources in Action (on behalf of the Massachusetts Executive Office of Health and Human Services), WRSD replaced all of its aging equipment in 2021 with brand-new technology to more effectively serve the needs of its students and the greater community.
WRSD serves adult and pediatric patients for hearing evaluations and hearing-aid fittings at its audiology clinic. Patients must be at least 3 years old for on-site evaluations, and the school also provides home-based early-intervention services for deaf and hard-of-hearing children from birth to age 3.
The WRSD clinic also stocks various hearing-aid supplies, including batteries, domes, wax guards, hearing-aid dehumidifiers, earmold cleaning kits, and hearing-aid cleaning kits, which are available for purchase for any walk-in customer.