Voice Care

If you’re experiencing voice, airway or swallowing problems, such as hoarseness, coughing, or narrowing of your airway, our laryngologist specialists can help. Laryngologists are Ear, Nose and Throat specialists who focus on these problems. We also partner with the Gender Care Clinic to offer gender affirming voice services.

What to expect:

Your first visit will start with a survey so we can learn about your general health and the symptoms you’re experiencing. Once we meet and discuss the survey, we’ll work together to establish a path forward. 

Many of our patients need a camera exam of the throat, called a laryngoscopy, to evaluate symptoms. This exam is usually performed through the nose. It’s also sometimes performed through the mouth. We offer topical medicine to make this exam more comfortable. 

Once we’ve identified a diagnosis, we’ll teach you about it, and talk through treatment options together. Treatment options may include medication, behavioral changes or surgical therapy. We sometimes coordinate with other Nebraska Medicine experts, such as speech language pathologists, pulmonologists, gastroenterologists and anesthesiologists to provide multidisciplinary treatment.

Often our Voice Care patients have anxiety about communicating over the phone. We encourage all our patients to sign up for OneChart, our electronic health record system. OneChart allows you to communicate directly with us online after your initial consultation. 

Why you should choose Nebraska Medicine for Voice Care:

Voice, airway and swallowing conditions have a significant quality of life impact, so we work hard to create treatment plans centered on you and your personal goals. 

Our specialists, Christopher Bingcang, MD, and Jayme Dowdall, MD, are the only two fellowship trained laryngologists in the state of Nebraska. 

Both doctors studied voice disorders, how to care for professional vocalists, and airway and swallowing problems for an extra year after their ear, nose and throat (ENT) training. Both are also singers themselves. Dr. Dowdall even has a special certification in performing arts medicine, so they understand how important and personal these conditions can be. 

Amber Koch, MS, CCC-SLP, is a certified speech/language pathologist with specialization in voice and upper airway disorders. She graduated with her master’s degree in 2012 from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and worked in rehabilitative outpatient speech/language pathology prior to joining the Nebraska Medicine otolaryngology team. Amber also partners with the Gender Care Clinic team.

Call 800.922.0000 to make an appointment if you’re ready to work with Nebraska’s Voice Care experts.