Hearing instrument unit volume in the US increased by 4.9% during 2003—the first major increase since 1998—while private dispensing practices saw their unit volumes increase by an average of 2.6%. There are some good reasons to be optimistic about 2004 and beyond. Here’s why.
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As few as 8% of dispensing professionals may have access to the HINT or QuickSin, and as many as half of all patients may be leaving offices with a 5 dB SNR hearing loss. In this context, it’s little wonder that some patients complain, “I hear better without my hearing aids.”
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Myths about fidelity and why we fail to persuade 80% of potential consumers to purchase and use hearing aids
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All too often, potential clients are choosing less-than-optimal technology or declining to purchase a hearing aid due to financial reasons. Third-party financing may be the answer.
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Interference relative to hearing aids and cellular telephones are still a major obstacle for hearing instrument users. This article presents an example of the technologies being developed to address these problems on the cell phone manufacturing end.
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The American Academy of Audiology Convention heads to San Antonio in April.
Read MoreDigitization, the Internet, and wireless communication are forever changing hearing care.
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If Baby-Boomers are to significantly change the hearing industry in the short term, then the overall image of amplification products may require some tweaking to reflect the total communication needs of this younger audience
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Virtually everyone agrees that hearing screening tests are underutilized by professional referral sources (eg, family doctors). A new CD/computer-based screener is designed to make hearing screening more accessible, thereby increasing professional referrals
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What factors are involved when a potential client is trying to choose where to seek help for his/her hearing problem? How are ALDs and computers being used by consumers? These answers and more are offered in this latest study of 3,000 hearing instrument users.
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If the custom hearing instrument market is to move forward, the industry and hearing care professionals need to find new ways to improve the consumer’s experience with amplification. This article looks at six hearing instrument features and performance areas cited by consumers as needing improvement: 1) benefit and listening experiences; 2) sound quality; 3) fit, comfort, and maintenance; 4) price; 5) cosmetics; and 6) batteries and hearing instrument controls.
Read MoreFour case studies on patients who have widely divergent hearing losses and lifestyles, and how DSP hearing instruments can be used to fit these individuals’ needs.
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Evidence suggests that hearing instruments are still providing only limited customer satisfaction in the listening situations measured by MarkeTrak, directional hearing instruments still make up only about 10% of the newer hearing aids in use, and the value of hearing instruments has remained constant for the last decade.
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Much has been written about the benefits of directional microphone hearing instruments and how to fit these devices. However, directional instruments are still underutilized. This article details some of the reasons for this, and describes a new type of directional device: an array microphone that uses a spatial distribution of three microphones to achieve its directivity. Candidacy and operational issues are addressed, and two field studies are used.
Read MoreIs your practice doing everything to capture profits from its battery sales? If not, here are some reasons why it should, as well as practical tips for enhancing the marketing of both batteries and your practice.
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