When Charlotte Eye Ear Nose and Throat Associates was founded in 1923, audiology was not yet a profession. If hearing testing was needed, it was done by the physician or a trained nurse.
In the 1960s, an audiometric technician was hired and trained by the physicians to perform basic air and bone audiograms. It was not until the early 1980s that an audiologist was hired at Charlotte Eye, Ear, Nose, and Throat Associates. Our audiology services were then expanded to include auditory brainstem response evaluation and electronystagmography. In 1984, Debbie Longacher Shea started our first hearing aids program.
The hearing aid and audiology program continued to grow under the direction of Judy Bible who took over the program in 1986. In 2000, Dr. Bible was appointed chief operating officer at Charlotte Eye Ear Nose and Throat Associates and Dr. Tracy Swanson assumed the audiology director’s position. In 2011, Dr. Swanson took the role of Audiology Clinical Coordinator focusing on education, training and developing a program for audiologists completing their doctorial studies and Dr. Dawn Hulthen Koncsol was appointed the position of Director of Audiology. Dr. Hulthen Koncsol has been a clinical audiologist for 16 years and previously worked at our Concord office. She received her Doctor of Audiology from A.T. Still University in 2012. The audiology program has grown from one audiologist and an audiometric technician in one office, to 21 audiologists, 5 audiology assistants, and administrative support staffing providing hearing services in 13 Charlotte audiology offices.
Our extensive program now includes comprehensive hearing tests and audiologic examinations, auditory brainstem response evaluation, electronystagmography, hearing aid services, cochlear implant services, vestibular rehabilitation, tinnitus retraining therapy, assistive listening devices and hearing tests for children.
We are proud of our commitment to our hearing impaired patients and we will continue to focus on their complete personal, hearing and hearing aid care.