Before he became a doctor, Sean O. McMenomey, MD, drove a truck to pay his way through school. While his journey from open road to operating room is unusual, the experience served him well. “So much of being a doctor is about being able to communicate with people on a real level,” Dr. McMenomey says in this Vital Signs podcast.

Now an otologist and neurotologist at NYU Langone, he specializes in helping people with hearing loss, with his patients ranging in age from 6 months to 96 years. Dr. McMenomey is grateful that he’s able to correct most types of hearing loss, thanks to advances in cochlear implants and other technologies. “When someone comes to me with hearing loss, I really don’t ever have to say there’s nothing I can do for them,” he says.