The mission of Sertoma is to improve the quality of life today for those at risk or impacted by hearing loss through education and support.  On Wednesday, May 19, the Sertoma Club of Laurel (men’s group) and Pine Belt Women’s Sertoma collaborated to donate 8 portable looping systems to area healthcare facilities. Those facilities included Westridge Family Clinic, ENT Surgical Services of Laurel and South Central Regional Medical Center.

A looping system is a special type of sound system for people who use hearing aids.  The looping systems provide a magnetic wireless signal that is dectected by a hearing aid when it is set to the telecoil (T-coil) setting and filters out unwanted background noise allowing for a better quality of sound.

Penny McNeer, President and Founder of Pine Belt Women’s Sertoma, is a member of the hearing impaired community. She stated, “One of the most important conversations a person can have is with a healthcare provider and being hearing impaired, sometimes we misinterpret words or miss vital information. The looping system will help the hearing impaired community avoid these type of issues and will allow us to have better communication and understanding with our healthcare providers.”

Pictured: Chris Tullos, President of Sertoma Club of Laurel, Dr. Mark Horne, Chief Medical Officer at SCRMC, Dr. Kelly Tullos, Family Medicine Physician at Laurel Family Clinic, Penny McNeer, President/Founder of Pine Belt Women’s Sertoma, Heather Gilbert, Vice President of Pine Belt Women’s Sertoma and Steve Thrash, Secretary of Sertoma of Laurel and Mission Specialist for Sertoma Inc.