ORL availability

[Headers]

i believe there to be some price gouging in that some hearing aids cost 2 to 3000€ yet one can buy a pair of Bluetooth connected ear buds along with charging box inc lcd display for 26€

OH is deffo going to try the earbud route for now

[Polarengineer]

I fear that earbuds will be of no use. The point of hearing aids is that they must be programmed to enhance those frequencies in which your ears cannot hear so well. My aids cost €2000 and are the cheapo battery type. Batteries cost €14 for 10 weeks from the internet. Isopropanol cleaner for peanuts per litre from internet and so far a few years control and maintenance by the audiologist every 3 months included. Mutuel insurance picked up the initial cost. Get your doc to write the prescription and find a local outfit audiologists.

[Polarengineer]

Correction... Batteries €14 for 30 weeks

[Wilbro]

Yes I queried earbuds and was told to avoid them as not as good as the proper aids.

[Quiksilver]

It's true that there is a lot of personalised programming involved with aids. What you're not told initially though is that you can't do any adjustments yourself, even to the point of volume control. In OH's case, he was told in no uncertain terms that he'd got to wear them all day every day, thus becoming totally reliant on them. Neither of us feel that it is appropriate. There are situations where they are necessary and useful and at least the old NHS ones were adaptable, but the high-end ones nowadays certainly aren't, however finely programmed.

[Wilbro]

@Quiksilver and
I put mine on each morning and basically forget about them. They aren't a problem unless you want to swim or go out in the rain. I can't imagine what's inappropriate about wearing them all day. Growing reliant on them? That's seems an odd thing to say as one is reliant on them to improve one's hearing.

[Quiksilver]

As his hearing loss is only in certain frequencies, and he only wants to capture / follow conversations, he wasn't at all happy about everything being amplified up to the hilt, all the time. I can sympathise with that. I did a week of one month's trial too and was horrified by the results. We live in a lovely, peaceful rural setting but would quickly become nervous wrecks with amplified Mirage jets, garden tool noise and even insects bombing by our heads! Even after supposed 'adjustment' to the lowest setting, he expected the aids to be a lot more adaptable to various situations than they are, but it's blanket coverage or nothing! Even in restaurants and social situations, it's blanket amplification, despite the promises of selective tuning.

[Polarengineer]

As they say, There is an app for that..
my lughole enhancers are coupled via bluetooth to the manufacturers app, allowing battery check and volume control. they automatically adjust volume when in a noisy place. They are not a top of the range aids, so the really posh ones must have some special features.

[Quiksilver]

The only real, practical difference was them being rechargeable so no fiddling about changing batteries. It's a high price to pay for the convenience, though, PE. As for apps, give me a break He's only just accepted my previous smartphone into his life but hardly uses it

[Quiksilver]

@Quiksilver and
Growing reliant on them? That's seems an odd thing to say as one is reliant on them to improve one's hearing.

I've just put my finger on the bit in your post that jangles, @Wilbro. These things don't improve your hearing, in the best case scenario they enable you to hear. Not the same thing at all I can't help feeling that for anyone with moderate hearing loss, they speed the impression if not the medical fact of actually making your hearing worse than it was before.