Dr. Matthew Bush: Giving the gift of hearing, here and around the world
Dr. Matthew Bush, a clinician and researcher UK Otolaryngology, Head & Neck Surgery, sat down with us for the latest installment of Making the Rounds, a blog series where you’ll get to know more about our providers.
Dr. Bush sees patients of all ages who have hearing loss. He specializes in cochlear implants, small electronic devices that can help provide a sense of sound to people who are profoundly deaf or severely hard of hearing.
Describe your ideal weekend
My ideal weekend would typically start by making pancakes for my five children, one of whom is a baby who doesn’t eat solid food yet. But her four brothers certainly eat for five and maybe even 10.
The weekends are all about family time. It’s about playing soccer and football in the backyard with the kids. It’s about reconnecting with them having been gone most of the week. We’re also usually active in our church on Sundays.
What’s do you enjoy most about being a dad?
The closeness of our relationship and the things that we can do together. Just seeing them becoming young adults and being able to mentor them, whether it’s playing basketball or soccer, or it’s working on Latin, or something like that.
They’re just really great kids.
What’s the last movie you saw?
Probably Fletch, the 1980s Chevy Chase movie. It’s my favorite movie of all time. I’ve watched it thousands of times.
What are your hobbies outside of work?
I’m actively involved in humanitarian mission work. Twice a year I go to Nairobi, Kenya, for 10-14 days. I’m involved in teaching at the University of Nairobi in their ear, nose and throat surgery department and engaging in some research activities with them as well as caring for patients who otherwise don’t have access to specialty care.
It takes about three or four months to prepare for each trip, so it becomes a year-long hobby, even though it’s only two weeks at a time. I go on my own time and on my own dime, but it’s worth more to me than anything. It’s really an important part of my life.
What’s your favorite place to visit in Kenya?
One of my favorite places on the planet is a little town called Nanyuki, Kenya. And Nanyuki is right at the base of Mt. Kenya, which is Africa’s second-highest peak behind Kilimanjaro. It just is one of my happy places.
