Jump to content

Hearing aids advice for a friend


Recommended Posts

4 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

And, Audiologists have PhDs, they are not medical doctors.

Most audiologists have masters degrees — possibly with another year of study/certification (but I can’t remember the details). I think you can get a PhD in audiology, but most don’t pursue it that far (and most audiology programs in universities don’t don’t offer PhDs).

Source: my mom was an audiologist her entire career, and she also taught audiology at the masters level for about 10-15 years too.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 minutes ago, JSngry said:

So you were referred, or knew him already? Didn't just pick somebody out of the phonebook, right?

And does he do all the work, or was there "technicians" involved?

And he's an independent, right? Not affiliated with any one company?

 

 

Just to be clear -- I am NOT the person I've been talking about here with the hearing problem; my friend is. My hearing problem was solved some years ago.  As I said before, all I know about my friend's situation is what he tells me. I should fly down to wherever he lives now (Colorado, I think) and put him and his audiologist up against the wall? I'm just trying to be as helpful as I can at his request and based again on what he decides to tell me. Becoming an expert in the world of hearing aids is not my goal -- asking what seem to me to be a few common sense questions is.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I’ve been having ear problems for years. I developed tinnitus in 2002 and when I get a cold it invariably becomes a sinus infection. I’ve used the same ENT for years and when it was time to get hearing aids he referred me to someone in the medical practice he was a part of. The audiologist said, yup, you need them. She recommended Oticons and that’s what I purchased. I didn’t look around because I trusted what they had to say.

I suppose I could have gone to another audiologist for other makes but didn’t feel the need to. 

Edited by Brad
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Brad said:

I’ve been having ear problems for years. I developed tinnitus in 2002 and when I get a cold it invariably becomes a sinus infection. I’ve used the same ENT for years and when it was time to get hearing aids he referred me to someone in the medical practice he was a part of. The audiologist said, yup, you need them. She recommended Oticons and that’s what I purchased. I didn’t look around because I trusted what they had to say. 

That's the route I would want to go, get a medical referral to somebody who's not under contract to any one company...there weren't, right?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, JSngry said:

That's the route I would want to go, get a medical referral to somebody who's not under contract to any one company...there weren't, right?

By under contact, do you mean with Oticon? I don’t know the answer but I don’t think so. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Right. In other words, they would have recommended what they thought was best for you, not the product they got the best commission on.

Best podiatrist in town, I stopped going to because, yeah, great doctor, but the guy had prouct out the ass for sale, and was not bashful about recommending it to you. Still a great doctor, and I never felt pressured, but...just not comfortable with that setup. I'm old-school and think that a doctor's function is to diagnose, treat, refer, recommend, but let somebody else be a salesman.

It took me a while before I found a PCP practice that wouldn't give you free samples of whatever they thought would be good for you and then wait to prescribe it. I thought it was a "let me know if it works or you, thing", but...trends manifest themself, and you see the pharma reps coming in all happy and whatnot and...no thanks.

Hearing aids...I want it to be right the first time, and I want to know that whoever is hooking me up has their priorities right - getting what is best for me, not for their balance sheet.

 

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

To my knowledge and understanding, every chain selling hearing aids is selling "their" brand.  This may or may not be the same for doctors involved in a larger practice versus local chain offices.

And they all have a range of equipment to offer, competing on both price and bells and whistles.

And they all provide a rather lengthy period to verify that you like the results before you're locked into them. 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I didn't like my first audiologist. (I don't mean personally, she just didn't solve my problem.) I do like the audiologist I've been with for two or three years now. 

The difference was the first one came from a place of "you can't possibly be having that experience, these hearing aids are good," while the second one is more "your experience is your experience." So that's the only advice I have: Look for one who is more like the second one.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...
8 hours ago, mjzee said:

That's pretty darn brilliant, if you ask me.  I've never even considered for an instant getting AirPods -- because they're so much pricier than the standard issue wired earbuds you get with most iPhones.  But with features like that, I might -- just might -- consider getting a set someday.  Not because I especially need that feature (far as I know, my hearing is 90% of normal, or some such -- which reminds me, I've been meaning to get into see an audiologist for about 20-25 years, which is how long it's been since I've had my ears tested).

But quite seriously, it's features like that which would make me consider paying the extra, just to have a set of probably better-than-makeshift hearing aids, which could be quite useful in certain situations, I would imagine.

Maybe nothing I'd necessarily want/need right now, but if things ever get back to normal-er (post-pandemic, will that even be a thing?) -- say in about 5 years.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/8/2021 at 7:14 PM, Rooster_Ties said:

That's pretty darn brilliant, if you ask me.  I've never even considered for an instant getting AirPods -- because they're so much pricier than the standard issue wired earbuds you get with most iPhones.  But with features like that, I might -- just might -- consider getting a set someday. 

Well, if you want earbuds with an iPhone now it's wireless or nothing. Apple ditched the aux port used for connecting wired earbuds back in 2016 - the last iPhones to offer such a port were the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.  

Edited by Dave Garrett
Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 minutes ago, Dave Garrett said:

Well, if you want earbuds with an iPhone now it's wireless or nothing. Apple ditched the aux port used for connecting wired earbuds back in 2016 - the last iPhones to offer such a port were the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.  

You can get a connector dongle, called a "lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Jack Adapter."  They're inexpensive.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

50 minutes ago, Dave Garrett said:

Well, if you want earbuds with an iPhone now it's wireless or nothing. Apple ditched the aux port used for connecting wired earbuds back in 2016 - the last iPhones to offer such a port were the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus.  

I’ve got an iPhone 11, and I think I got wired earbuds with it (included). I’ve never owned wireless earphones, and use wired earphones (the standard Apple type) all the time, albeit the kind that plug into the same port as the charger goes into (the lightning port might be what it’s called, I forget).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

53 minutes ago, mjzee said:

You can get a connector dongle, called a "lightning to 3.5 mm Headphone Jack Adapter."  They're inexpensive.

 

9 minutes ago, Rooster_Ties said:

I’ve got an iPhone 11, and I think I got wired earbuds with it (included). I’ve never owned wireless earphones, and use wired earphones (the standard Apple type) all the time, albeit the kind that plug into the same port as the charger goes into (the lightning port might be what it’s called, I forget).

Yeah, I forgot about the adaptors. I have rarely used earbuds or a headset, although I do have a Bluetooth headset I used to use occasionally.

The iPhone 11 was, IIRC, the last one to come with wired earbuds and a charger included. I still have an iPhone 7, but the battery has been on its last legs for some time now (requiring me to charge it 3-4 times a day), and I've been on the fence about whether to get the battery replaced (at a fairly nominal cost of $50) or just get a new phone. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...