About Chad Ruffin, MD

Born with severe hearing loss, Dr. Ruffin is an Ear, Nose & Throat (ENT) Doctor, Cochlear Implant Surgeon and advocate for adults and kids. In addition to working one-on-one with patients at his clinic in Seattle, Dr. Ruffin & his team perform innovative research and advocacy for the hard of hearing community.

Learn more about Dr. Ruffin

An Advocate For You

Born with severe hearing loss, Dr. Ruffin is uniquely equipped with the skills and experience necessary to improve the lives of hard of hearing patients. His prior experience includes:

  • Surgical training at Indiana University, one of the busiest otolaryngology training programs.
  • Advanced training in ear surgery and cochlear implant research as a faculty physician at Indiana University.
  • Former partner of Proliance Surgeons, one of the largest surgical groups with advanced training in the United States.

He is passionate about using his journey as a deaf patient, surgeon, auditory neuroscientist, and hearing technology innovator to help others succeed with hearing loss.

You can also find his work at Forbes , Hearing Tracker,  Washington Post, National Association for the Deaf, Hearing Loss Association of America.

Dr. Ruffin has received research grants from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, the American Academy of Otolaryngology, and the National Institutes of Health. He has patented cochlear implant technology, published in multiple journals and his advocacy efforts were recognized by Science. At the American Academy of Achievement, he shared the challenges of hearing loss with heads of state and other luminaries. He has also shared his insights at the Exponential Medicine Conference hosted by Singularity University. He consults for Decibel Therapeutics, a company launching a gene therapy treatment for hearing loss.

ENT Doctor for Adults & Children

Dr. Ruffin is committed to improving the achievement of deaf and hard-of-hearing people. His teams innovate in three independent spaces:

  • Hearing Speech & Deaf Center Seattle, Washington

  • Academic research with RuffLab at Indiana University and with the University of Washington

  • 3Cairns, a technology and advocacy start-up in Portland, Oregon

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Dr. Ruffin is committed to providing every patient with outstanding care.