Here’s why Kayla Rogers appreciates the gift of hearing just a little bit more than the average audiologist

By Ken McEntee

Change can be challenging.

But Kayla Rogers’ transition to Twinsburg, she says, has been seamless and exciting. Kayla, Brookway Hearing Center’s licensed hearing aid specialist, says she feels right at home after moving to Brookway’s Twinsburg location in April after two years in Strongsville.

“My patients have been so nice and so welcoming,” she says. “They give me recommendations about where to eat and shop. Some have offered to hook me up with a real estate agent so I can move to Twinsburg, which is what I plan to do.”

Meanwhile, Kayla says she is committed to helping to change her patients’ worlds by helping to improve their hearing.

“People with hearing loss can miss out on a lot of important things,” she says. “They get left out of conversations, which can lead them to withdraw from social situations and even family functions. It can be very depressing for the patient—and also for the patient’s family.”

Kayla can empathize.

She was born deaf and wore hearing aids until she got cochlear implants—devices that electronically stimulate the auditory nerve to provide a sense of sound—when she was nine years old.

“I know the struggles and frustrations that my patients and their families go through because I’ve gone through them, too. And my family struggled through them with me,” Kayla says. “I want to impact my patients’ lives the same way that my hearing aid specialists have impacted mine.”

Kayla’s desire to “pay it forward” led her to the University of Akron, where she earned a Bachelor’s degree in speech pathology and audiology. Doubters and naysayers helped to fuel her passion.

“People always told me, ‘You’re deaf. You can’t do that. It’s not possible for you,’” Kayla recalls. “Telling me that I can’t do something just makes me more determined to do it. I say, ‘If you can do it, there is no reason why I can’t do it.’”

Making customers happy is one thing she says she is determined to do at Brookway.

“I love watching somebody’s face light up when they try a hearing aid for the first time,” she says. “I want them to be happy when they walk out the door, and I want them to stay that way.”

That’s why Brookway Hearing doesn’t simply sell hearing devices.

“We offer a full-service program,” Kayla explains. “It includes fitting, cleanings, programming and adjustments whenever necessary, and it’s all included in one price.”

Once you leave with your hearing aid, Kayla will call you the next day to be sure everything’s okay. Then she’ll have you come back the next week to see whether an adjustment is necessary.

Today’s high-tech hearing aids, Kayla says, track the wearer’s hearing environment so that custom adjustments can be made.

“We review the environment log to see what kinds of situations you’re in,” she says. “For example, if you’re often in loud situations with a lot of background noise, we can adjust for that. We can take a hearing aid and make it sound a lot of different ways, depending on the wearer’s needs and preferences.”

That personal service is not available when you buy a hearing aid online, says Robert Pavlik Jr., a board-certified hearing instrument specialist and audioprosthologist, and the owner of Brookway.

“Amplifying sounds and helping people to understand what they’re hearing are two completely different things,” Robert says.

Doing the latter, he says, is a family tradition at Brookway.

Before buying the Twinsburg hearing center—which is located in a cozy century home—Robert’s sister, Monica Henkel, a board-certified hearing aid specialist, operated it as Discover Hearing. Like Kayla, Monica learned the business by working with Robert in Strongsville before venturing out to Twinsburg.

“We’re keeping it in the family,” Monica says, adding she has left her patients in the capable hands of Kayla and Robert.

“This office does everything they do in Strongsville, from offering the latest technology in hearing diagnostics to custom fit in-canal hearing aids,” Kayla says. “We also share a homey, non-institutional atmosphere that helps our patients to be comfortable.”

Brookway’s philosophy, Robert adds, is to be upfront and honest with patients.

“Every person hears differently, and there is no one-size-fits-all solution,” he says. “We carry just about every brand of hearing aid, and the most expensive device that ‘does it all’ is not always the best choice for everybody. We explain what will work, what won’t, and why, and let the patient make the informed choice.”

You can discover the Brookway difference by scheduling a hearing exam at 330-425-1339. Brookway Hearing Center is located at 8975 Darrow Road (Route 91), in Twinsburg. You can learn more at BrookwayHearing.com.