The school nurse has a responsibility to identify the health professionals at the local, regional, and state levels that are qualified to evaluate suspected hearing problems. In addition to local health care providers, families may need a referral to an audiologist. These professionals usually work in hospitals and ear, nose, and throat (ENT) physician offices. Major hospitals with extensive audiology services (i.e., Children’s Mercy in Kansas City, St. Louis Children’s, Mercy Hospital in Springfield, and University Hospital in Columbia); have audiologists on staff. These offices could also make referrals for audiologists in private practice. Other resources for assistance with hearing problems include:

• MO HealthNet (state subsidized children’s health insurance for low-income families).
• Speech and hearing clinics (university-based and private).
• Missouri School for the Deaf.

MO HealthNet

The school nurse’s role is to identify whether there is a need for financial assistance for those students with incomplete referrals. If a parent indicates there is a financial barrier to follow-up on the recommendation, the first step is to determine if the student is financially eligible for assistance through MO HealthNet. MO HealthNet is based on a national child health insurance program for uninsured children. This is a program for medical, dental and vision insurance. Access to these programs is through the Family Support Division (FSD) of the MO Department of Social Services (DSS). Children eligible for free and reduced lunch programs may often meet the financial criteria.

If the parent/guardian is interested in exploring their eligibility for MO HealthNet, they should be referred to MO HealthNet for Kids. For more information, call 855-FSD-INFO (855-373-4636) to speak with a team member; or visit myDSS.mo.gov to start a chat.

Missouri School for the Deaf

The Missouri School for the Deaf has a number of resources available to schools and families. Any Missouri resident, 0-21 years of age, can receive an audiological evaluation at no charge. In addition, there is an outreach coordinator who assists schools with children who have hearing impairments. Individuals can rent hearing aids, and schools can rent sound field frequency modulation systems and auditory trainers by the school year. If a family has hearing needs, they can be directed to contact:

Missouri School for the Deaf Resource Center
505 East 5th Street
Fulton, MO 65251
(573) 592-4000
https://msd.dese.mo.gov/ 

University Speech Pathology and/or Audiology Programs

Central Institute of the Deaf
Speech-Hearing Clinic
Washington University School of Medicine
825 S. Taylor Ave., St. Louis, MO 63110
(314) 977-0132 or (877) 444-4574
https://cid.edu 

Fontbonne College
6800 Wydown Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63105
(314) 889-1407
https://www.fontbonne.edu/academics/collegeeducation-allied-health-professions/eardley-family-clinic-for-speech-language-hearing/ 

Missouri State University
Speech, Language and Hearing Clinic Communication Sciences and Disorders
901 S. National Ave.
Springfield, MO 65897
(417) 836-5275
https://www.missouristate.edu/csd/clinic/ 

Southeast Missouri State University
Center for Speech and Hearing
402 N. Pacific
Cape Girardeau, MO 63701
(573) 651-2050
https://semo.edu/commdisorders/speech.html 

St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf
1314 Strassner
Brentwood, MO 63144
(314) 918-1369
https://sjid.org/ 

St. Louis University
Speech-Language and Hearing Clinic
McGannon Hall, Suite 32
3750 Lindell Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63108
(314) 977-3365
https://www.slu.edu/doisy/clinics-and-community/speech-hearing-learning-clinic.php 

Truman State University
Speech and Hearing Clinic - Health
Sciences Building
Kirksville, MO 63501
(660) 785-7425
https://www.truman.edu/majorsprograms/majors-minors/communication-disorders-major/communications-disorders-facilities/speech-hearing-clinic/ 

University of Central Missouri
Welch-Schmidt Center for Communication Disorders
Warrensburg, MO 64093
(660)543- 4993
https://www.ucmo.edu/harmon-college-of-business-and-professional-studies/college-highlights/welch-schmidt-center-for-communication-disorders/ 

University of Missouri-Columbia
Speech and Hearing Clinic
301 Lewis Hall
Columbia, MO 65201
(573) 884- 2940
https://healthprofessions.missouri.edu/speech-language-and-hearing-sciences/clinics-and-service/mu-speech-and-hearing-clinic/ 

Cardinal Glennon Children's Hospital - Audiology
1465 S. Grand Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63104
(314) 577- 5671
https://www.ssmhealth.com/cardinal-glennon/hearing-loss-in-children-symptoms-treatment 

Children's Mercy Hospital and Clinics
Hearing and Speech Clinic
2401 Gillham Road
Kansas City, MO 64108
(816) 960- 4001
https://www.childrensmercy.org/departments-and-clinics/hearing-and-speech 

In addition, some school health programs have developed resources at the local level to assist families in obtaining care for which no other source of funding has been identified. This may be medical emergency funds, church groups, or local organizations, such as Optimist Clubs. It is helpful to provide the parents with a list of appropriate referral sources as part of the referral process.

Websites Related To Hearing

General information:

• MedlinePlus - Health information from the National Library of Medicine - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/
• Kids Health information from Nemours - http://www.kidshealth.org/
• Hearing Loss Association of America - http://www.hearingloss.org/ 

Hard to test (infants and children):

• http://www.med.umich.edu/childhearinginfo/
• http://www.cincinnatichildrens.org/patients/child/health/ 

Noise induced hearing loss:

• National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders - http://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/noise-induced-hearing-loss/