"At Oticon, our commitment to People First has always included a dedicated focus on the youngest and most vulnerable members of the hearing-impaired population," said Peer Lauritsen, President of Oticon, Inc. "With Oticon Pediatrics, we affirm our belief that it takes a truly dedicated approach to help children with hearing problems achieve their full potential. That is why we deliver the solutions and services professionals and caregivers need to provide children the opportunities they deserve. This is what child-friendly hearing care is all about."
The new brand will be a single source for optimal solutions for hearing-impaired youngsters—whether they are infants and toddlers in the home or young students in special education and mainstream classroom settings. Increasingly, as the choice of hearing solutions continues to expand, pediatric audiologists and children with hearing loss require the support of a specialized group of pediatric experts who are focused on their unique needs.
"Hearing care professionals are looking for integrated solutions for children with hearing loss," explained Lauritsen. "We recognize the benefit to hearing care professionals and caregivers of providing a full-range of hearing care solutions under the Oticon Pediatrics brand."
Oticon is a pioneer in pediatric hearing care, tailoring the high standards of customer service and audiology support available from Oticon to the specific needs of pediatric hearing care professionals. The highly qualified individuals who make up Oticon Pediatrics are among the industry's most experienced and dedicated pediatric professionals.
The Oticon Pediatrics management team consists of: Sheena D. Oliver, AuD, MBA, Manager, Oticon Pediatrics; Max Hansen, Manager, Oticon Pediatrics; Maureen Doty Tomasula MA, CCC-A, Product Marketing Manager; and George Lindley, Ph.D., AuD., Manager, Pediatric Training & Education.
In addition, a team consisting of 13 knowledgeable account managers/audiologists, customer service professionals, audiology support staff and a pediatric audiologist provide day-to-day service and support to pediatric hearing care professionals and their staffs.
Oticon's established line of state-of-the-art advanced technology hearing solutions and pediatric service and support programs are well known to pediatric audiologists in private, clinic and school settings. The award-winning OtiKids program provides both children and parents with the newest and most relevant information from leading pediatric audiologists and researchers.
More recently, Oticon Pediatrics introduced a number of innovative tools and services including the national Loaner Bank Program that loans hearing devices for a three-month period to children under the age of three years while arrangements for third-party reimbursement are secured or while cochlear implant evaluation is underway. The recently released Oticon Pediatric Counseling CD, designed to make parent counseling easier and more effective, combines the best practices of knowledgeable pediatric audiology professionals with Oticon's extensive experience in creating state-of-the-art interactive counseling solutions.
Three new resource manuals from Oticon Pediatrics target parents, caregivers and teens. The Workbook for Parents of Children Who Are Newly Identified as Hard of Hearing assists parents in becoming active and informed members of their child's support team. Keeping Molehills from Becoming Mountains: Understanding and Supporting Teen Students with Hearing Loss and Special Consideration for Parents Raising a Teenager with Hearing Loss help parents, teachers and hearing care professionals address the personal and practical issues teens encounter as they strive to achieve their full potential.
Oticon Pediatrics aims to make managing pediatric hearing care simpler and more effective than ever before. "The needs of the child and family drive our innovation," said Oticon Pediatrics Manager Sheena Oliver, MBA, MA, CCC-A. "We strive to create advanced technology solutions that are also practical and exceptionally easy to use."
For more information about Oticon Pediatrics and its child-friendly hearing solutions, contact Maureen Doty Tomasula at 888-OTIPED1 or mdd@oticonusa.com or visit oticonusa.com. You can also visit the Oticon Web Channel on Audiology Online at www.audiologyonline.com/channels/oticon.asp
