Feel comfortable and in control with our 4 step care plan
1. Consultation
We will evaluate your hearing and establish your individual hearing profile. It is a simple, painless process, and not at all intimidating.
Firstly, questions relating to your medical history, lifestyle and/or regular exposure to loud noise will help build an overall picture of any hearing issues.
Hearing test
Then a hearing test will be carried out in a soundproof booth – wearing headphones, or ear inserts, you will be played a series of tones and sounds at varying volumes and you simply press a button to signal when you have heard each one.
A speech test is performed in background noise to determine the impact background noise has on your ability to understand speech.
By the end of the test, the audiologist will have a clear picture of where your hearing is at its strongest and weakest, with the results plotted on a simple graph called an Audiogram.
Personal plan
Together, we develop and agree a personal plan based on your specific hearing requirements, your lifestyle, your budget and your personal preferences.
We will show you various types of hearing aid, explaining which are the most suitable and why. We make sure that you have all the information you need to make your decision.
2. Fitting
The vast majority of hearing aids are specifically made-to- measure and we therefore need to take impressions of your ears – this ensures a snug, comfortable fit for maximum efficiency.
It generally takes between two to three weeks for your hearing aids to arrive and an appointment will be scheduled for the fitting.
Operating your new aids
At the fitting, your digital hearing aids will be programmed and tuned to your precise hearing requirements. You will be shown the various programmes and how to operate the settings, how to insert them properly, as well as carrying out basic maintenance, like battery and filter changes.
Your questions answered
There will be time to go through all of your questions. If there’s something you forget, or if you have a question after a few days or more – don’t worry, just give us a call. It’s all part of the ongoing support service.
3. Follow-up
A follow-up appointment will be scheduled for a few weeks after the fitting, to see how you are adapting to hearing the world again. Getting used to wearing hearing aids can be quite daunting and everything can seem so LOUD – your brain needs time to adjust to hearing sounds more naturally.
Initial experiences
We will discuss and evaluate all of your initial experiences – in our considerable experience, there are always things to talk about at this stage. You can be sure that we understand the process you are going through and we are happy to answer all of your questions. It may be, for instance, that we need to tweak your hearing aids, do a little fine tuning so that they are giving you the best-possible sound quality.
Support provided
Even after this standard follow-up appointment, we are here at your disposal. Our aftercare service means that we are always ready to provide whatever support and advice you may need along the way – there is no limit to follow up appointments.
4. Aftercare
Our aftercare programme ensures trouble free integration into wearing hearing devices and starts from the initial assessment, throughout the lifetime of the hearing aid. Free for the first two years, and thereafter, a modest fee or a maintenance contract to cover any necessary attendance.
A regular programme of check-ups
For us, aftercare means just that: our job is not complete until a client is totally happy with his or her new or replacement hearing aids. This can mean return visits for tweaking or re-programming, as well as a regular programme of check-ups – 3 months, 4 months or 6 months, dependent on the patient.
Manufacturer’s warranty
All hearing aids carry an international two year manufacturer’s warranty against component failure. During this time, we will attend to any hearing aid completely free of charge, including filter changes, re-tubing, programming, fitting, re-assessment, as well as free clean and checks.