Comprehensive Hearing Evaluation Los Alamos

A standard hearing test said you're fine, but something still feels off

A pure-tone test measures whether you can detect a beep at different pitches. It doesn't measure whether you can follow a conversation in a noisy restaurant, hear your pharmacist's instructions clearly, or keep up with a group discussion when people aren't facing you directly. A comprehensive hearing evaluation at Hear New Mexico tests both tone detection and speech understanding in quiet and in noise. For many people, how well they hear in a noisy environment is the real answer to finding solutions.

Not being pressured into hearing aids you may not need

A comprehensive hearing evaluation is a diagnostic service. Its job is to tell you what your hearing actually looks like, not to start a sales conversation. If the evaluation finds nothing that requires intervention, you leave knowing that. If hearing aids are appropriate, the options are laid out without pressure toward any particular device or price tier. If a specialty referral makes more sense, whether that's a balance evaluation, a cochlear implant consultation, or a visit with an ENT, that recommendation comes without a financial stake in where you land. Dr. Coltisor holds a Post-Doctoral Fellowship in Vestibular Sciences from Vanderbilt University Medical Center and is New Mexico's only audiologist with that credential. The evaluation can answer your questions, and treatment options are based on what our evaluation finds.

Specialist-level care used to mean a long drive off the mesa

Los Alamos Medical Center doesn't have an audiology department. Anyone in Los Alamos or White Rock who needed a specialist-level evaluation previously had one option: a 40-plus-mile drive to Santa Fe or a longer trip to Albuquerque. Hear New Mexico's office on Central Ave changes that: patients from White Rock are there in under 15 minutes. Española and Pojoaque residents are closer to Central Ave than to any audiology practice in Albuquerque. No referral is needed to book an appointment, and most new patients are seen within a week.

Bluetooth hearing aids aren't permitted in classified work environments

Most standard hearing aids are Bluetooth-enabled. In Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities (SCIFs), that disqualifies them entirely. For LANL employees and contractors whose work involves classified areas, a hearing aid that works well in daily life may not be permitted on the job at all. That creates a genuine bind: your hearing or your clearance. Dr. Coltisor fits non-wireless, SCIF-compliant devices for patients who need them and is familiar with the workplace constraints that come with lab employment. LANL employed more than 16,000 workers in 2024, the majority in positions that require a security clearance. Finding a local audiologist like Dr. Coltisor who understands that is important for workers in that type of environment.

Leaving the appointment with a page of numbers and no explanation

Many patients describe the same experience after a hearing evaluation: a printout handed across the desk, a few minutes with someone pointing at a graph, and a vague sense that nothing was really explained. Hear New Mexico is different: your hearing evaluation will take approximately 45 minutes, after which we'll review your results in plain language: where your hearing is strong, where it's not, and what that means for your actual daily life. You'll leave with real answers.

Medicaid and Turquoise Care are accepted. Sliding-scale fees are available for patients who qualify, and Dr. Coltisor works directly with patients to navigate coverage options, including identifying plans that include hearing benefits. If cost is the reason you've been putting this off, let's have a conversation and figure out an affordable way to move forward!

Frequently Asked Questions

My doctor said my hearing is fine, but I still struggle to follow conversations. Should I get a second opinion?

Yes, and you're not alone. A basic tones test at a primary care office measures whether you can detect sounds, but it doesn't check how well you understand speech in noise. Patients across Northern New Mexico, from Espanola to White Rock, come to Hear New Mexico after being told their hearing is "normal" and still leaving without answers. A comprehensive hearing evaluation looks at both.

How is a full hearing evaluation different from the quick test I got at my last checkup?

A standard office screening checks whether you can hear tones at certain pitches. A comprehensive evaluation goes further, testing how well you understand speech in quiet settings and in background noise, assessing the health of the ear itself, and reviewing your full history. At Hear New Mexico in Los Alamos, you leave the appointment knowing what was found and what the next step is, not just with a printout.

Does insurance cover a hearing test, or will I have to pay out of pocket?

Many insurance plans, including Medicaid (Turquoise Care in New Mexico), cover diagnostic hearing evaluations when medically necessary. Hear New Mexico accepts Medicaid and offers sliding-scale fees for patients who need them. Residents in Los Alamos, Pojoaque, and Abiquiu no longer need to travel two hours to Albuquerque or navigate a large hospital system just to find out what coverage they have.

I've been putting off getting my hearing checked for years. Is it really worth doing now?

Research consistently shows untreated hearing loss is linked to cognitive decline, social withdrawal, and depression. According to the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, approximately 28.8 million U.S. adults could benefit from hearing aids but have never used them (https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/statistics/quick-statistics-hearing). The sooner a baseline evaluation is done, the more treatment options remain available. Patients from Taos to Albuquerque have found that knowing is easier to live with than guessing.

Can kids get a comprehensive hearing evaluation too, or is this just for adults?

Hear New Mexico sees children ages 3 and up for full hearing evaluations (parents please call to discuss younger childrens' suitability). Pediatric evaluations use age-appropriate methods and parents receive plain-language results the same day. Families in Los Alamos County, the Española Valley, and northern Santa Fe County have visited our Central Ave office rather than coordinating a trip to UNM or Presbyterian clinics in Albuquerque for a first evaluation.