Ralph Ohde, PhD, professor emeritus of Hearing and Speech Sciences at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center, died Jan. 8. He was 73.

Using technology developed here, Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) has organized a large database of children who are deaf or hard of hearing that combines data from 48 programs in four countries — about 7,000 children so far.

Having a child born without an external ear or ear canal can be a scary and confusing experience for parents, and finding medical care for the rare condition has meant having to travel to several distant medical centers for treatment options.

Ron Eavey, M.D., Guy M. Maness Professor and chair of Otolaryngology and director of the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center, received the 2017 Edward C. Bradley S.J., M.D., Medical Alumni Award from the Saint Joseph’s University Medical Alumni Chapter at its annual awards event on its Philadelphia campus on April 23.

People who have problems with their sense of smell or taste and don’t know the cause have a new treatment option at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center.

Patients are coming to the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center from around the globe, discovering the center’s world-class services through social media. One such person is Sophia Pafitis, who traveled to Vanderbilt last year from the Australian island of Tasmania.

Professional artists, hobbyists and art enthusiasts from around the country created sidewalk chalk art in Hillsboro Village Sept. 24-25 during the second annual Nashville Chalk Fest, which benefits the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences, specifically the Preschool for Children with Autism and the Mama Lere Hearing School.