Bio

Dr. Furukawa was born and raised in a small town in the Northeast region of Japan. Her mother was a nurse in a regional hospital and she attended a daycare center adjacent to the hospital. She has fond memories of wandering throughout the hospital with her sister and playing while their mother worked the late shift. When looking back, her past experience naturally led to becoming a health care professional.

Dr. Furukawa attended Kawasaki University of Medical Welfare, in Okayama, Japan, and graduated in 1995. Worked as a SpeechLanguage-Hearing Therapist at the university hospital for a year and then moved to the U.S. to attend graduate school at Washington State University in Spokane and graduated in 1999. After graduation, she worked in several audiology positions both in the U.S. and in Japan. Previous work experience includes Research Audiologist at the National Center for Rehabilitative Auditory Research (Portland VA Medical Center, NCRAR); Clinical Research manager at Med-El Japan, a cochlear implant company; and Clinical Audiologist at the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center and a few private clinics. While working, she attended a long-distance learning program and obtained a Doctor of Audiology degree from the Arizona School of Health Sciences, in Mesa, in 2009. Dr. Furukawa joined Kaiser Permanente Hawaii’s audiology and hearing service center team in September 2021. Prior to coming to Hawaii, she worked at Kaiser Permanente San Jose from May of 2015. Dr. Furukawa decided to join Kaiser Permanente after her personal experience as a patient, from friendly and caring staff to the efficiency of the organization. She enjoys working with a great group of people and providing care that will keep her patients’ ears and hearing healthy.