Dr. Walter Ralph, Acting Chairman, Ear, Nose, and Throat, examining patient.
BronxCare Health System
Ear, Nose, and Throat
Providing Efficient, Effective, and Compassionate Care
The Ear, Nose, and Throat Department, also known as the Department of Otolaryngology/ Head and Neck Surgery (ENT), under the leadership of Dr. Walter Ralph, Jr., Acting Chairman, performs highly complex and advanced procedures for diseases of the ears, nose, throat, and neck. This past year, the ENT team provided more than 10,000 outpatient visits and performed more than 1,000 surgeries.
With extensive experience in the field, Dr. Ralph treats all types of general ENT problems, but specializes in diseases of the thyroid, parathyroid, ear, and voice. Working closely with his Audiology Division, he provides the latest advances in ear surgery, including bone-anchored implants, ear drum repair, and ear bone reconstruction. Lisa Predmore, AuD, Director, Audiology, and Brenda Guerra, AuD, provide important assistance in programming the bone-anchored hearing aids, as well as provide other important testing for patients with hearing and balance issues using state-of-the-art equipment.
The ENT department is fortunate to have Dr. Srinivasan Krishna, Vice Chairman of the Department, Director of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and one of only a handful of Board-Certified facial plastic surgeons that practice in the Bronx. Dr. Krishna is achieving successful cosmetic and functional results for his patients. He also collaborates with the Neurosurgery Department to assist them in approaches to pituitary and skull base tumors.
Dr. Robert Wong, Director, Head and Neck Oncology, specializes in the treatment of head and neck cancers and collaborates with the Oncology and Radiation Oncology services to provide comprehensive and cutting edge cancer care to patients.
Nurse practitioner Omojola Grace Olarewaju and Physician Assistant Kayanna Patteson are also key members of the ENT team.
When premature infants have swallowing, hearing, or breathing issues that can threaten their development, BronxCare’s team of physicians, audiologists, and speech language pathologists work closely with neonatologists in developing treatment plans and therapies. The Audiology Division supervises universal hearing screening on all infants born at BronxCare Health System. Pediatric feeding assessments and interventions are also implemented to facilitate safe eating and swallowing skills in medically fragile babies.
Swallowing and speech are essential functions of the oral cavity and the ENT department excels in helping patients perform these tasks better. The team uses specialized fiberoptic cameras and radiologic tests to accurately diagnose and treat inpatients and outpatients with swallowing disorders. Video-stroboscopy, the use of rapid pulses of light to view vocal cord movement, enables the team to diagnose even the most subtle derangements of the voice. Laura Bastone, Director, Speech and Language Pathology, brings her expertise in this area to BronxCare along with her team, Danielle Cardinali and Sarah DeFrancesco.
“We are succeeding in improving patient outcomes, and that is certainly a source of satisfaction for our ENT team.”
—Dr. Walter Ralph, Jr., Acting Chairman, Ear, Nose, and Throat
