Passing of Cochlear Implant Pioneer Dr. Thomas J. Balkany

Passing of Cochlear Implant Pioneer Dr. Thomas J. Balkany

The American Cochlear Implant Alliance is saddened to share news of the passing of Thomas J. Balkany MD on July 30, 2025.

Dr. Balkany was the Hotchkiss Professor and Chairman Emeritus in the Department of Otolaryngology at the University of Miami’s School of Medicine. He graduated from the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine in 1972 and went on to complete his otolaryngology residency at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and additional training in Neurotology/Skull Base Surgery at the House Ear Institute in Los Angeles. 

Dr. Balkany founded the Colorado Ear Clinic after completing his training where he worked for 10 years before returning to Florida in 1990 as the founding director of the Miami Ear Institute and Cochlear Implant Program which has grown into one of the most respected programs in the world.  Dr. Balkany was also one of the Founding Members of American Cochlear Implant Alliance in 2011.

Throughout his career, Dr. Balkany was involved in many professional organizations including the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, Auditory-Verbal International, AG Bell, the Triological Society, the American Otological Society, the American Neurotology Society, and the Florida Society of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery. Dr. Balkany was also the founding chair of the AAO-HNS Cochlear Implant Committee and the William House Cochlear Implant Study Group. Over his lifetime, Dr. Balkany published over 250 scientific papers and four books and held 14 U.S. and international patents related to cochlear implants. 

Dr. Balkany’s list of accolades is unrivaled and includes induction into the University of Miami Hall of Fame, the President’s Honor Award from the American Academy of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, the Frazer Award from the Royal College of Surgeons, and the Noel L. Cohen Award for lifetime achievement from the American Neurotology Society. He has been recognized by many organizations for his contributions to the field and shared his expertise on cochlear implantation as a visiting professor at over 40 universities nationally and internationally.

Following his retirement from clinical medicine, Dr. Balkany founded the Institute for Cochlear Implant Training (ICIT) in 2012, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to teaching and promoting excellence in cochlear implantation education and hands-on training. Through ICIT, hundreds of cochlear implant surgeons around the world have been able to learn cochlear implant surgery from one of the true pioneers in the field.