Today we’d like to introduce you to Layne Garrett.
Hi Layne, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born and raised in American Fork. My family has a long tradition of serving the health needs of the residents of Utah County (my grandfather was Dr. Guy Richards). Following my LDS mission to the deaf in the Boston Massachusetts Mission, I decided to pursue Audiology as a profession.
I received my Bachelor of Science degree in Communicative Disorders from Utah State University, a Master of Science in Audiology from Brigham Young University, and my Doctor of Audiology from Salus University. I am a Fellow of the American Academy of Audiology and certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association.
Prior to opening Timpanogos Hearing & Balance, I worked for Sonic Innovations in the Customer Care division working with and training hearing professionals across the country to ensure their patient’s hearing aids were working correctly. I also split my time working in the research department at Sonic Innovations.
I have served as a mentor for Audiology interns from Utah State University. I work with America Helps (a humanitarian relief organization for Africa) and am active in the Boy Scouts of America. In my spare time, I enjoy cycling, golf, and amateur radio. I am married to Kimberlee Bennett from Highland and have three children.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Of course, the road has not been super smooth– no good road ever is! One of the major challenges we have experienced is that insurances are constantly changing if and how they pay for hearing health care. That is extremely frustrating, especially since hearing loss is linked with dementia, diabetes, and heart conditions.
In fact, the 2020 Lancet report says that the number one most modifiable risk factor for avoiding dementia and cognitive decline is to treat hearing loss. That being the case, it would make a lot more sense for insurance companies and Medicare to pay for preventative hearing loss treatment than to pay for long-term memory care– but that’s not how it works in the real world.
Overcoming those challenges has probably been our number one issue over the years. Most recently, we’ve dealt with the same issues as other small businesses– difficulty in hiring and retaining good employees, the rising cost of business because of inflation, and competition with big box stores.
We’ve been impressed with Timpanogos Hearing & Tinnitus, but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
Timpanogos Hearing & Tinnitus has been serving the residents of Utah County for over 18 years and has won the prestigious Best of State award in Auditory services 10 times. Our providers have over 30 years of experience in the field of hearing science.
Along with providing the highest quality of hearing and tinnitus health care for its patients, Timpanogos Hearing & Tinnitus strives to contribute to the well-being of the community. Some highlights of our service include humanitarian trips and donations, financially supporting community causes, and creating a program to provide free hearing technology for those in need.
Timpanogos Hearing & Tinnitus has never been satisfied with purely meeting the guidelines and regulations for hearing health care providers. We have made it a policy to go above and beyond what is expected in inpatient care, continuing education, employee relations, and community involvement.
Because untreated hearing loss is strongly linked with cognitive decline, dementia, depression, isolation, and other adverse health effects, it has become imperative to find better ways to make hearing care more accessible, effective, and affordable for patients.
In order to do this, Timpanogos Hearing invested thousands of dollars in technology and consultation services to create an unparalleled patient experience focused on making hearing care affordable and accessible.
Hearing health is a strange field because there are two very distinct ways of receiving care. The first is the retail model where a patient goes somewhere like Costco and just purchases a widget to try to hear better.
The second model and the one we follow is the medical model where we believe in extensively trained hearing specialists, pre-appointment education, state-of-the-art testing on the physiological, audiometric, and cognitive aspects of hearing loss, treatment plan recommended based on the testing results, verification that the treatment is effective, and consistent follow-up care.
By following this model, our patient satisfaction rate is much higher than the retail model, and more importantly, we can verify that we are meeting patients’ cognitive and hearing needs.
Here are a few things that set us apart from retail stores and other hearing clinics:
*I co-wrote an educational patient-centered book that we send to all of our new patients so they can be informed about hearing loss, tinnitus, and treatment options
*We have produced a series of educational videos to send to our patients as well– we believe that an educated patient is a prepared patient, so we do everything we can to provide science-backed information for our patients.
*We do extensive testing to get to the root cause and extent of our patient’s hearing problems. With this information, we can make much better recommendations.
*We have the equipment to diagnose problems with hearing aids, as well as pull out moisture from them (the cause of the majority of problems with hearing aids). We are happy to fix what other companies can’t.
*We have multiple forms of verification to make sure our treatment is working. Even though verification is part of the recommended best practices for audiology, only 30 percent of clinics actually do it.
*We are a founding member of the exclusive Excellence in Audiology group– a group that is raising the bar for hearing health care across the country.
*We offer multiple ways to make hearing health care affordable, including working with a foundation to provide free hearing technology for those for whom buying hearing devices would legitimately take food off of their table.
Have you learned any interesting or important lessons due to the Covid-19 Crisis?
Because 95% of our patients are over the age of 65, it was crucial to rethink how we offered services in a COVID-19 world.
This meant investing in technology and creating a process for providing telehealth for patients so they could receive care if they chose from the comfort and safety of their own homes if they so choose. This program was created at the end of 2020 and in 2021, was utilized more than 100% more than during the previous year.
This has become and will continue to be a crucial element in providing care for those who can’t or shouldn’t leave their homes.
Pricing:
- We offer a membership plan ranging from $100 to $170 per month.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@utahhearingaids.com
- Website: www.TheBestHearing.com
- Instagram: @TimpHearing
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TimpanogosHearingBalance
- Twitter: @UtahHearing
- Youtube: www.thbtestimonials.com
