About Our Clinic
One of the greatest joys we have at Sun Country Hearing Ltd. is seeing the faces of those who are hearing their best again. Located in Estevan, SK, and serving all southeast Saskatchewan. Whether you’re visiting us for a hearing aid fitting or need earwax removal services, you can count on us to provide you with kindness, care and the respect you deserve. We value you and your needs.
Our History
Sun Country Hearing Ltd. was founded in 2014. After losing her Dad to cancer, Jacquie and her family decided to move to Jacquie’s hometown of Estevan to be closer to family. Jacquie’s passion for touching people’s lives through audiology made the decision to open a hearing clinic in Estevan an easy one.
Voted “Estevan’s Best Audiologist” in the Estevan Mercury’s Reader’s Choice Best of Estevan Awards
Our Team
Jacquie Mvula
Jacquie discovered her passion for audiology while she was a student at Minot State University. She graduated from Minot State University with a Bachelor of Science in Communication Disorders in 2003 and a Master of Science in Audiology in 2005.
More about Jacquie
Jacquie worked in private clinics in Edmonton and Red Deer before opening her first hearing clinic, Heartland Hearing, in Stettler, AB. Jacquie also served as the Director of Professional Practice – Audiology for the Alberta College of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists during her time in Alberta. After losing her father to cancer, Jacquie and her family decided to move back to her hometown of Estevan. In 2014 she opened Sun Country Hearing so that she could continue helping people through audiology.
She maintains a busy lifestyle, owning and operating two hearing clinics and keeping up with her two sons, aged 10 and 13 and giving back to her community in various capacities. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling with her husband and cheering on her boys at swim meets and on the basketball court.
- Jacquie was nominated for the “Women of Today” awards in the category of Outstanding Entrepreneur
Melanie Tribiger
Melanie joined the Sun Country Hearing team as a receptionist one week after the clinic opened in 2014. It did not take long for her to fall in love with helping people through audiology and she decided to make it a career. Melanie graduated from the Hearing Aid Practitioner program offered through Grant MacEwan University. She is proud to help clients in her role as a Hearing Aid Practitioner. Prior to her graduation, she worked as Office Manager of Sun Country Hearing and Yorkton Hearing Services. Melanie prides herself on the relationships she builds with our clients.
More about Melanie
Melanie graduated from the Hearing Aid Practitioner program offered through Grant MacEwan University. She is proud to help clients in her role as a Hearing Aid Practitioner. Prior to her graduation, she worked as Office Manager of Sun Country Hearing and Yorkton Hearing Services.
Mikayla Belhumeur
My name is Mikayla Belhumeur, I have been living in Estevan since November of 2019, and have been a part of Sun Country Hearing since July of 2020. I started as a part time receptionist and have recently came back from my maternity leave into a new role, as the office manager. I absolutely love my job, the environment and people I get to work with every single day, I look forward to meeting and connecting with every client who walks through our doors, young and old.
More about Mikayla
Prior to working here, I was a continuing care aide for 5 years, working with the elderly is something I have always had a passion for. In May of 2021, I had a beautiful baby girl, so in my spare time you can find me chasing after our busy girl, and enjoying time as a little family. Learning the ins and outs of hearing has been so enjoyable and I would love to learn more and expand my knowledge, maybe some possible education will be in my future.
Lois
Frequently Asked Questions
How long has the clinic been in operation?
Do you have financing?
Financing is available on select hearing devices. We would be happy to help walk you through the application process.
Can you bill my private insurance?
When should I get my hearing tested?
Usually, individuals do not seek out their audiologist until a hearing problem is noticed. For example, his/her spouse complaining about the TV being too loud, or difficulty understanding speech in background noise. Although a hearing test at that time is recommended, a baseline is also a recommended starting point so that change in hearing can be determined
1. All babies should be screened at birth, but since Universal Newborn Hearing Screening (UNHS) has not been established in Saskatchewan, parents must seek this testing on their own.
2. All children entering kindergarten should have a hearing screening.
3. Anyone working in the presence of excessive noise (85 dBA) should have an annual threshold check.
4. An assessment around the age of 50 will help determine a progressive hearing loss in the future.
5. A sudden shift in hearing acuity requires a hearing test within 48 hours.
Additional testing may be recommended by your audiologist depending on case history and audiometric results. Once hearing loss or tinnitus is determined, an audiometric test every two years is recommended (sooner if any of the above is applicable).
How often should I have my hearing tested?
Do I need a referral to see an audiologist?
Why do I have ear wax and what is the best way to get it out of my ears?
Ear wax (or cerumen) in moderate amounts is healthy. It serves as a protectant for your ears, just as eyelashes protect your eyes. A combination of ear hairs, outward migration of the skin in the canal, and jaw movement serve as a natural cleaner of the canal. The aging process often changes the shape of the canal to a slim oval which can also cause wax to build up.
As well, hearing aids can block the wax from making its way out of the canal. Use of Q-tips can push the cerumen further into the canal where it can no longer come out on its own. Remember: never put anything smaller than your elbow into your ear canal! Use of mineral oil, olive oil, or even Colace may be used to soften cerumen before removal, but only if there is certainty that the eardrum is intact.
There are three methods a regulated health care professional will use to remove excessive ear wax:
1. Instrumentation: wax is removed using a curette;
2. Suction: wax is removed using a mini vacuum (safest and most preferred by clients);
3. Irrigation: flushing with water.
NOTE: Ear candling is not a recommended method for cerumen removal.
I have hearing loss in both ears, but do just fine with only one hearing aid. Why would I get a second hearing aid?
I know someone with a hearing loss. What can I do to make communicating easier for both of us?
- Speak normally; not too exaggerated, too quickly or too loudly.
Be sure you have eye contact before you begin speaking to the person. - Use facial expressions, gestures and body language.
- Ensure the person is aware when the topic changes.
- Be aware of competing noises or sounds in the room such as music, other people talking, or mechanical sounds such as air conditioners. Background noises make it much more difficult to hear.
- Reword your sentence if the person does not understand what you are saying.
- Most importantly, ask if there is anything you can do to improve communication.
I woke up this morning with significantly poorer hearing than usual in one ear. What should I do?
Sudden sensorineural hearing loss (SSHL) should be considered a medical emergency and be dealt with in the first 48 hours. The sooner you seek medical attention, the more likely you are to recover some or all of your hearing. Since there are more than 100 possible causes of SSHL, it is often unlikely that it will be identified. Possible treatments include antibiotics, low salt diet, and most commonly, steroids.
What is the difference between and audiologist and a hearing aid practitioner?
Audiologists are health care professionals in the areas of hearing and balance. Hearing aid practitioners (HAPs) share a portion of this scope of practice concerning hearing assessment and hearing aid fittings. The level of training between the professions varies with most HAPs having completed a two year correspondence course, while audiologists have completed an undergraduate degree and a master’s degree (at minimum) lasting 6-8 years.
Audiologists work in a variety of work settings including private practice, public health, education systems, hospitals, universities, and hearing aid manufacturers. Another difference is the age range of clientele with audiologists being the only profession of the two to deal with the pediatric population (birth and up).
Audiologists are regulated in Saskatchewan through the Saskatchewan Association of Speech-Language Pathologists and Audiologists (SASLPA).
I have one "dead" ear. Can you do anything to help me?
All too often, clients report a “dead” ear when, in actuality, that ear just has poorer hearing than the other one. Following a hearing test by an audiologist to diagnose the type and degree of hearing loss being suffered, amplification options can be discussed. In the event that one ear either has no hearing OR if it can hear environmental sounds, but cannot distinguish speech sounds adequately, there is now a cosmetically pleasing option to try.
This is called a CROS (or biCROS) hearing aid which stands for “Contralateral Routing of Signals”. In other words, it takes the sound received on the side of the “bad ear”, and sends it over to the “good ear” where it is picked up by a receiving hearing aid that only amplifies the sound if needed for that ear. In the past, this was only possible with a cord running around the back of the neck, but technology has come a long way. It is now wireless and the devices are very discrete.
Hear the world around you the way you were meant to!
For more information about our hearing services, or to schedule an appointment, contact us today at 306.636.3277.
We now have a satellite clinic!
Sun Country Hearing Ltd. - Moosomin
709 Carlton St. Moosomin, SK S0G 3N0, Canada
Hours by appointment only.
Sun Country Hearing Ltd.
#5 418 Kensington Ave
Estevan, SK S4A 3A1, Canada
Contact
Hours
Monday - Thursday
9:00 AM - 4:00 PM
Friday
9:00 AM - 3:00 PM
Closed Daily From 12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
Closed on Fridays in July & August