Qualified in Social Sciences at Birmingham University I became a Hearing Aid Audiologist in 1975 and am now registered with the Health Professionals Council. During those 35 years I have seen the development of hearing appliances from the ear trumpet to advanced digital technology. However, despite all of our technological advances, understanding a person’s hearing problem is still the most important factor in helping a person improve their hearing.
Digital hearing appliances are programmable, that is they are tuned to respond to the sounds that you need amplified and leave other sounds alone. Ideally this tuning should be undertaken in your own home environment so that you can assess the benefits against sounds with which you are familiar.
Successfully tuning a hearing appliance takes time and patience and needs to be undertaken over a period of time as you get used to the amplification. As your hearing changes with age, digital technology allows the appliance to be re-tuned to compensate.
When you purchase a piece of equipment make sure what the price covers. Is it just a piece of equipment or does it come with help and advice and re-tuning as required and where will this assistance take place …?
