“I want to hear better, but I’m very apprehensive to get hearing aids. I have a friend with hearing aids and she says she can’t hearing anything but noise when she wears them.”
I can’t count how many times I’ve heard this or a very similar statement from a patient in my office for hearing aid consultations. Everyone has heard the horror stories of someone they know who has spent thousands of dollars on a new set of hearing aids to only have them end up in a drawer.
There are number of factors that can lead to success when it comes to hearing health care and overall patient satisfaction, however they can be broken down into two main factors.
#1 The Patient
In my opinion the most important part of a successful outcome is the patient themselves. In most cases hearing loss is a gradual process and often we don’t even realize what we are missing. Our brains get used to hearing with our hearing loss and that’s what the brain perceives as normal. When we attempt to change that “normal” it takes some adapting. The longer we live with the hearing loss the longer it may take us to adapt to hearing with hearing aids. Many patients expect hearing aids to be like eye glasses were you walk in get tested, get set to your prescription and walk out the door hearing well again. Unfortunately, this is not the case and with hearing aids it is much more of a process which requires much more commitment which is again why I feel the patient is the most important factor. As we re-train our brain to hearing through the hearing aids it is often a balancing act between comfort and benefit. Our brains need to have access to sound as much as possible, which means wearing the hearing aids from morning to night. While the end outcome is better hearing it can often take multiple appointments and possibly months before the overall goal is reached. This brings us to the next factor.
#2 The Provider
Another important factor when choosing your hearing healthcare, is the provider. When it comes to hearing aids and hearing health care this can sometimes be the most confusing. There are two different professions that work with hearing aids; Audiologist and Hearing Aid Dispensers.
An Audiologist is a health care professional who is trained to evaluate hearing loss and related disorders, including balance (vestibular) disorders and tinnitus (ringing in the ears) and to rehabilitate individuals with hearing loss and related disorders. Audiologist are required to complete doctoral level degree in audiology, as well as a supervised externship prior to state licensure. Most doctor of audiology programs require 8 years to complete, 4 years of undergraduate work followed by 4 years of graduate work. Upon completion of the doctoral degree, Audiologists must also pass a national standardized examination in order to be eligible for state licensure. Continuing education requirements must be met in order for an Audiologist to maintain state licensure.
A hearing aid dispenser is licensed to perform audiometric testing for the sole purpose of selling and fitting hearing aids. In order to obtain a license, hearing aid dispensers are required to pass an exam. Prior to taking the exam, certain requirements must be met, which vary from state to state. In many states, hearing aid dispensers are only required to have a high school diploma. Online courses are available to allow hearing instrument specialist the knowledge to pass the exam and are required in some states. Most courses can be completed in less than 6 months. In other states, hearing aid dispensers must complete two years of college or post-secondary education in any field prior to applying for licensure.
There are obviously significant differences between the two professions with Audiologist receiving significantly more education and training prior to them practicing their profession. This often leads to more consistency with the level of care, treatment and professionalism a patient may experience while working an audiologist. However that is not to say that all audiologist are great and all hearing instrument dispenser are bad. There are many very capable and seasoned hearing instrument specialist in practice and one should evaluate their options and make the best decision for their specific needs and comfort.