Hearing and Speech Language Development

Should my child have a hearing test?

If you are concerned about your child’s speech and language skills, you should have his or her hearing tested in a sound proof booth with a licensed audiologist before pursuing speech therapy.

In my phone interview, I always ask parents:  “Has your child ever had a hearing test in a sound proof booth?”  I always get one of three responses:

1. “He had his hearing tested at birth and he passed.”  This is a misconception because that was a hearing screening (not a test) and it only screened your child’s hearing at THAT time.

2. “The pediatrician gave him a hearing test and he’s fine.”  Again, this was a screening, not a complete hearing test in a sound proof booth with a licensed audiologist.

3. “He can hear everything, I’m not concerned.”  I’m sure he can hear, but he may have difficulty, for example, hearing high frequency sounds such as S and F, which could make it difficult for him to produce these sounds accurately, or understand certain words in rapid conversational speech, especially in a classroom setting.

To determine if your child can hear accurately, have him or her complete an audiological exam.

Below are Pediatric Otolaryngologists (Ear, Nose and Throat / ENT physicians) that have licensed audiologists available to test your child’s hearing.  At some of these offices you will meet with the physician and the audiologist for a thorough exam:

 

Michael Rothschild

1175 Park Avenue (&93^rd)

New York, NY 10128

212-996-2995

 

Jacqueline Jones

1175 Park Avenue (&93^rd)

New York, NY 10128

212-746-2236

 

Will Bernstein

530 First Avenue, 3C

New York, NY 10016

212-263-8237

 

Max April, Robert Ward

240 East 38th Street

14th Floor

New York, NY 10016

646-501-7890

 

Vikash Modi, Alison Maresh

428 East 72^nd Street

Oxford Building, Suite 100

New York, NY 10021

646-962-2224

646-962-2225

 

Joseph Haddad

16 East 60^th Street

4^th Floor

Suite 470

212-326-8475

 

Sujana S. Chandrasekhar

18 East 48th Street

New York, NY 10017

212-249-3232

646-868-4300