Bridging Clinic and Classroom Improves Outcomes for Children with Cochlear Implants

By: Jodie Nicotra | June 01, 2026 | 8 min. read |

At the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Alex Mestres is redefining pediatric hearing care by connecting clinical expertise with classroom support to improve long-term outcomes for children with cochlear implants.

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine cochlear implant team members pose together at the American Cochlear Implant Alliance 2026 conference in Chicago. — Alex Mestres at ACIA 2026.

For children who receive cochlear implants, the operating room is only the beginning of the journey. Learning to hear through these devices affects not only speech and language development, but also classroom learning, social relationships and emotional growth.

That broader reality is what drives the work of Alexandria “Alex” Mestres at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. As an educational specialist in the Miller School’s Department of Otolaryngology — Head and Neck Surgery, Mestres serves as a bridge between the worlds of the clinic and the school.

Mestres recently presented on research that grew from her unique position at the 2026 meeting of the American Cochlear Implant Alliance (ACIA).

“I’m excited that this very medically focused group has embraced the fact that you can’t just put these devices on kids’ heads and expect that all will be well. There’s a lot more to it than that,” Mestres said.

Why Cochlear Implant Care Extends Beyond Surgery

With degrees in deaf and hard-of-hearing education and applied learning sciences, Mestres is the first true educator to work for the department. She taught deaf and hard-of-hearing students and served for a time with Miami-Dade County Public Schools as the deaf and hard-of-hearing department chair before opening her own consultancy. After meeting several members of the Miller School team, Mestres joined the department as a part-time patient education coordinator.

One of only nine patient education coordinators in the country, Mestres sees the position as a critical bridge between the clinic and schools.

“It goes both ways. Clinicians need to understand the educational side, at least enough for them to be able to refer parents. But I think it’s extremely important for educators to understand the clinical side of cochlear implants: knowing why physicians make the decisions they make,” she said.

This study shows why bridges between the clinic, parents and schools are so important, and how important it is to involve education in pediatric hearing health care.
Alex Mestres

Supporting Families Through Complex Educational Decisions

In her role, Mestres creates individualized education programs for students who have received cochlear implants. But a lot of her time is spent educating parents.

“Parents’ struggles always begin with what their options are, and they don’t always understand the why of cochlear implants,” said Mestres. “They sometimes don’t understand what other impacts there might be with schooling, and because they’re not in the schoolroom with their child, they may not see all the factors, like noise, that affect their child. So I spend time educating parents about the invisible things that will affect deaf and hard of hearing children who receive cochlear implants.”

Mestres’ role at the Miller School is reflected in her equally unique position in ACIA. She is one of the few educators to serve on the ACIA Scientific Committee. She will cycle off this year after a three-year term, but she was pleased to note that two educators will replace her.

Elevating the Role of Education in Pediatric Hearing Health

Mestres started a special interest group for educators at ACIA. Last year the room was so full that the fire marshal had to limit the number of people who could attend. People were so interested in understanding the educational aspects of cochlear implants that this year Mestres’ group needed the biggest room.

“I’m not egotistical enough to think it had anything to do with me, but it was because ACIA made it important, and people were coming and connecting because they recognized the importance,” she said.

Mestres’ presentation started with an effort to measure her own job performance. As an effort to track the impact of her role, the department collected information on patients, including their name, age, hearing device and place in school, as well as why the parents were coming to Mestres in the clinic. Suddenly, everyone realized that they were collecting data.

The data show that even though patients may have an individualized education program, parents are still coming for support or help dealing with classroom issues, which suggests to Mestres that there can still be a bumpy road when it comes to supporting students.

Dr. Ivette Cejas speaking at the American Cochlear Implant Alliance 2026 conference with a slide titled “Hearing Beyond the Ears: Psychological Insights from an Otolaryngology/Audiology Practice,” from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. — Dr. Ivette Cejas collaborated with Alex Mestres on the work Mestres presented at ACIA 2026.

“This study shows why bridges between the clinic, parents and schools are so important, and how important it is to involve education in pediatric hearing health care,” she said.

Ivette Cejas, Ph.D., professor of clinical otolaryngology, pediatrics and psychology at the Miller School and director of family support services for the Children’s Hearing Program, mentored Mestres on her research. Dr. Cejas highlighted the importance for non-medical specialists like Mestres to share their knowledge at professional organizations like ACIA.

She said, “Sometimes it takes one or a few people to speak up about something being important, to be willing to be engaged as part of an organization and to spearhead and lead the way. That way, we can ensure that more people across the nation will be doing similar work.”