Mary Chatelain founded Pinnacle Hearing in Little Rock in 2013 with the purpose of delivering hearing health care in Arkansas. While growing up in Magnolia, Chatelain has a deep passion for creating accessible medical care in rural areas, she said, and as the child of entrepreneurs, she had always dreamt of owning her own practice.
“My parents had their own roofing business when I was growing up. It’s different from what I do, but I saw my dad’s work ethic, and I saw that the business ran on creativity,” Chatelain said. “It was really cool, and even though roofing and hearing aids are completely different, they both lie in the call to serve others.”
Chatelain graduated from Louisiana Tech University and was part of the first class in Louisiana to earn a doctoral degree in audiology. Chatelain said she was drawn to the field because of its relative newness and inarguable need.
“I wanted to be in an industry that was growing and changing, and I see how these things lead to creativity in the field,” Chatelain said.
At Pinnacle Hearing, Chatelain said she is excited about the clinic’s ability to implement telehealth via teleradiology.
“We can actually do remote hearing aid programming now. Say I have a patient that drives two hours to see me from a rural area. If they can’t come back immediately, we are able to send programming to their hearing aids remotely through their telephone,” Chatelain said.
Hearing loss remains one of the largest reasons people become isolated, and according to Chatelain, it is often invisible to those around the individuals who are suffering.
“You don’t see it, and that leads to depression and other things,” Chatelain said. “One thing that’s really important to me is that every person that comes to my office feels seen. I want them to feel appreciated.”
In a world where health care is becoming a more abbreviated and express form of care, Chatelain said she is aware that doctors appointments can be a burden for patients. This model can deter people from coming in when they need to, she said, adding that she continues to be committed to performing quality health care that allows people to feel cared for and unrushed.
“I want people to know that we’re going to help patients however we can. A lot of times, that will be prescription hearing aids or counseling, but it’s also with providing resources to other things that might help,” Chatelain said.
At the center of a desire to serve and care for others well, Chatelain remains focused on impacting and making the quality of life better for those in Little Rock, as well as those residing in rural areas.
“I think that we are just starting to see the correlation and the need for people to come in for hearing evaluations sooner. Hearing loss leads to being a higher fall risk and potential cognitive delays,” Chatelain said. “We are encouraging people to get audiology services sooner rather than later.”
Although hearing loss is typically associated with old age, Chatelain said that she has seen patients of all ages, including those in their 20s, experience hearing loss. The impact of not being able to hear affects everyone regardless, she said.
“I’m able to help people with what they like, where they’re at, with what they have,” she said. “If it makes their life even 20 percent better or 50 percent better, we are keeping them in community and connected with other people.”
