Meet Matthew Kist | Audiologist, Small Business Owner

We had the good fortune of connecting with Matthew Kist and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Matthew, is your business focused on helping the community? If so, how?
There are a couple of things going on here. A stigma audiologists run into in their career is that we are simply hearing aid salesmen and women, but there is so much more going on both with the patient and behind the scenes that, if you’ve never spent time in an appointment with an audiologist, you’d have no idea it’s happening. First, I think audiologists play much more of a “rehabilitative specialist” or “counselor” in the early appointments. In my office, we often counsel a patient about addressing hearing loss for the first time in their life, and that can be a difficult bridge to cross mentally for a patient. We make sure it’s an easy and comfortable approach—addressing hearing loss does not need to be scary. I think that’s what I love most about our staff, we can make the patient feel “at home” with us and as if they are addressing this problem with a lifelong friend by their side. Patients may not always remember what you say, but they will remember how you make them feel, and I’m very proud of the compassion and care all of us here at Northern Kentucky Audiology exhibit with each and every patient.

Second, aside from the counseling, the rehabilitation to hearing again can be a bit of a process, and it’s never the same for any two patients. Just this week, I can think of three or four different patients who got fit with hearing aids and they all have different goals in mind. One patient is a health provider who relies on hearing every word around them and is in complex listening environments, one patient is newly retired and wants to hear more of their family, including grandkids, and one patient is Deaf and simply wants access to sound, whether it’s environmental safety or listening to music and feeling the beat. Three very different approaches to fitting rationales for me. But, in a broad sense, we help the community access what they’ve been missing, whether it’s speech, conversations in tough environments, or just general sound.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
I always like to start this story by saying that I’m a two-time college dropout. I was a class clown my senior year in high school for the most part and I didn’t even begin to get my life together until three years after graduation. Sometime between moving back home and now, I decided to get my life together and actually try in my college classes. I had plenty of people in my life telling me I wasn’t making a good enough effort, and quite frankly, they were right. After graduate school, I worked in the field of audiology for two years before buying the practice at which I was working. It had been the plan for 5 years, and it was so rewarding to actually make it happen.

The past five two and a half years of ownership have been unbelievable beyond my wildest dreams. I truly enjoy every aspect of it, from seeing patients and connecting with them on a personal level, to the business meetings and conference calls, to having students rotate in and out. The previous owner has semi-retired but she now works for me a few days a week, and she is an invaluable part of my success. She has over 35 years in the hearing industry, so of course I still use her as my greatest resource. Being able to work at this practice since I was a student allowed me to become engrossed in the community, and it has been such a rewarding relationship. I also now have a 4th year student, Morgan, working at the practice as a part of our team, too. The practice has been growing over the past few years, so her addition has been very welcomed!

I’m most proud of the fact that we’ve been able to maintain who we are as a clinic during this period of growth. We haven’t lost sight of what sets us apart: our ability to connect and relate with the population on a very human level. We make addressing hearing loss a comfortable experience, and sometimes that “bedside manner” so to speak can be lost in the tumult of business ownership. I’m proud to say that our five-star reviews speak for themself. I’m proud that the community trusts us. I’m proud that I’m able to give back to the important people in my life. This is known to very few people at the moment, but I just signed a contract with WKRC Local 12 to be the locally trusted expert in the field for the next year. We’ve been nominated for best audiologist and best hearing aid practice in the greater Cincinnati area multiple years in a row. It hasn’t always been easy getting to this point, but it is so rewarding to see the hard work all of us have put in pay off.

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
Oh gosh, how much time we have? Anyone who knows me knows that I absolutely love the city of Cincinnati and think it’s one of the greatest cities in the US. Let’s see.. Friday we would hit up Adeep India in Clifton for lunch– the best hole in the wall Indian food in the city. The University of Cincinnati campus is beautiful, so we could take a walk and explore that part of town while we’re there. In the evening, we’d head south and have dinner at a fun spot like The Eagle or NADA, and then head off to the Reds game. On Fridays they do post-game fireworks, and trust me, it’s a real show of firepower (hopefully the Reds offense is, too.) On Saturday, let’s visit the zoo. Grab a coney or two while we’re there. There are tons of parks to explore in the afternoon, plenty with great views of the city or the river. Saturday night dinner would be something special, so maybe Sotto or The Precinct, two of my favorites.
Sunday mornings were made for brunch, so we’d pay a visit to Taste of Belgium or Sugar N’ Spice diner. A really low-key brunch spot on the east side is Kitchen 1883, for those of you who feel like taking a drive. Now that we’ve got some energy, maybe we play a round of 9 or 18 at one of Cincinnati’s many public golf courses. Depending on the time of year, you could also catch a Bengals game, an FC Cincinnati match, or maybe a concert down at Riverbend.
Monday– let’s get back to work.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
I think the first two people who deserve the most credit are my mom Mary and my sister Jennifer. They have always been there for me no matter what, through the ups and downs, through the good times and bad. They have helped me understand the definition of unwavering love. My wife, Emma, has also been instrumental in allowing me to acheive this level of success with my career. She essentially has made me a better man, brother, son, and now husband and father by always encouraging me to strive for bigger and better goals that may not have the easiest route. She has opened my eyes to so many new things in the world and our son is very lucky to have her as a mother!

I’d also like to give a shoutout to my father, Michelle Vaught, Rob Keifer, Kathy and Steve Luhn, Jordan, both Alysons, Cody and Kelli, Morgan, Holli, my guys from back home, Taylor, Stephanie, Dr. Earl, Riley Bass… I think about all of you way more often than you probably realize. I’m nothing without you in my life, and I’m eternally grateful. I hope I can give back to all of you at some point in my life for all you’ve done for me.

Website: luhnhearingcare.com

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthew-kist-au-d-45a40b124/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LuhnHearingCare