McLaren Bay Region, the 415-bed acute care, Bay City-based hospital, celebrated recently as surgeon Dr. Candice Colby-Scott performed her 100th cochlear implant procedure of the year, helping to restore the hearing of patients with severe hearing loss.
Reaching this milestone makes the neurotologist, a specialized ENT surgeon capable of treating complex ear conditions, along with her audiologist colleague, Rachel LeBlanc, AUD, CCC-A, the most accomplished cochlear implant duo in the state.
“I am grateful for the opportunity to help so many people in our community hear their loved ones again,” Dr. Colby-Scott said. “Cochlear implants not only give patients their hearing back, but they also allow them to engage and participate in life again. Our team has built this center from the ground up, and it is now one of the busiest centers in Michigan serving patients from all over the state.”
For those living with severe hearing limitations in one or both ears and whose traditional hearing aids are ineffective, permanent devices implanted into the inner ear convert sound—received by the device’s microphone—into electrical impulses that stimulate the auditory nerve, allowing them to hear sounds again.
An outpatient procedure in which most patients return home that same day, the device is activated during a post-operative visit approximately two to three weeks after the procedure. Working with an audiologist, patients train to interpret the signals received by the brain from the implant, essentially relearning to interpret sound.
“This device and these procedures truly are a second chance at hearing for our patients,” Dr. Colby-Scott said. “To more easily and efficiently communicate with those around them is truly inspiring to see, and Rachel and I are incredibly humbled and grateful to be part of their journey.”
Neurotologist Candice Colby-Scott, MD, is the cochlear implant director at McLaren Bay Midland Ear, Nose, and Throat Cochlear Implant and Baha Center, located at 801 Joe Mann Boulevard, Suite H, in Midland. To learn more or make an appointment, call (989) 794-9210 or visit mclaren.org/bayregion.
About McLaren Bay Region
McLaren Bay Region is a 415-bed acute tertiary care hospital located in Bay City, Michigan, providing specialty, primary and preventive care. Services include cardiovascular, neuroscience, orthopedics, oncology, women’s health, and rehabilitation. McLaren Bay Region is a certified Primary Stroke Center, as designated by the Joint Commission. McLaren Bay Region’s Emergency Department treats more than 45,000 patients per year. Learn more at mclaren.org/bayregion.
About McLaren Health Care
McLaren Health Care, headquartered in Grand Blanc, Michigan, is a $6.6 billion, fully integrated health care delivery system committed to quality, evidence-based patient care and cost efficiency. The McLaren system includes 14 hospitals in Michigan, ambulatory surgery centers, imaging centers, a 490-member employed primary and specialty care physician network, commercial and Medicaid HMOs covering more than 732,838 lives in Michigan and Indiana, home health, infusion and hospice providers, pharmacy services, a clinical laboratory network and a wholly owned medical malpractice insurance company. McLaren operates Michigan’s largest network of cancer centers and providers, anchored by the Karmanos Cancer Institute, one of only 53 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the U.S. McLaren has 28,000 full-, part-time and contracted employees and more than 113,000 network providers throughout Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. Learn more at mclaren.org.