09/27/16 lds
HAYS, Kan. -- Free adult hearing screenings, sponsored by the Kansas Masonic Foundation, will be offered this fall and next spring in six western Kansas communities by Fort Hays State University.

In addition, services for adults with swallowing difficulties, called dysphagia, will be offered in several other Kansas communities throughout the spring semester. Both services will be provided by graduate students from the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders and the FHSU Herndon Clinic.

"The FHSU Herndon Clinic in the Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders is very fortunate to have recently received a $250,000 grant from the Kansas Masonic Foundation to support adult speech, language and hearing services in western Kansas," said Marcy Beougher, speech-language pathologist and an instructor in the department.

The first hearing screening will be from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday, Oct. 7, at the Masonic Center, 600 Cedar Dr., Scott City. No appointment is necessary. Screenings will be conducted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Each site will have four stations, each with an FHSU graduate student providing screenings, supervised by Beougher. Each screening will take approximately 15-20 minutes.

"Many of these sites have never had a free hearing screening scheduled in their local community, so our hope is to provide a worthwhile service to many adults who would not have otherwise had the opportunity," said Beougher.

The location of the screenings are listed by date. Exact times and locations for the later sites will be announced soon.

Oct. 7: Scott City Masonic Center, 9 a.m.-2 p.m.
Nov. 4: Medicine Lodge
Dec. 2: Hoisington
Feb. 3: Hill City
March 10: Hugoton
April 7: Goodland

Beougher and Kori Haberman, CSD graduate assistant, are organizing the hearing screenings.

"We are very thankful to the Kansas Masonic Foundation for this opportunity to bring a much-needed service that also provides excellent clinical experience for our FHSU graduate students," said Beougher.

"We believe it will be a win-win situation for all involved."

For more information, visit fhsu.edu/herndon-clinic/ or contact the FHSU Department of Communication Sciences and Disorders at 785-628-5366.