When you come in for a hearing test, here's what to expect.
The first step is a consultation with our hearing professional. After you have filled out the necessary paperwork, we will talk about situations where you're having trouble understanding others. We'll also ask general questions about your medical history, as this could give us some clue about the source of any potential hearing loss.
Read more below to learn about next steps.
What makes our office different? Birkdale Audiology explores more than just a basic hearing test. If you often say, “I can hear but can’t understand” or if you have more difficulty hearing in background noise, we recommend the Communication Needs Assessment.
A diagnostic hearing exam is a starting point for evaluating hearing levels and speech understanding in quiet. This includes: otoscopy (a visual inspection of your ear canal and ear drum, checking for wax), tympanometry (a pressure test evaluating your ear drum movement), air conduction, bone conduction, speech recognition threshold, speech discrimination in quiet, and uncomfortable loudness levels. After testing is completed, a consult is given to discuss results, recommendations, and treatment plan options.
A Communication Needs Assessment is the gold standard for thorough functional diagnostic hearing examinations. A CNA is not just measuring basic hearing thresholds but also taking into account processing and understanding speech in background noise. It examines ear-to-brain hearing. We are looking at the connection from ear to brain by measuring how you hear and how you process that information.
By choosing a Communication Needs Assessment, the audiologist will be able to get a more complete picture of how you hear in everyday life, not just in a quiet environment. This deeper insight allows for more effective treatment options and personalized hearing solutions, including the best hearing aids for your needs and the optimal way to program them for maximum clarity and comfort. If treatment is needed, the audiologist will include testing and comparisons with and without hearing aids, clearly demonstrating aided benefit.
A Communication Needs Assessment is highly encouraged if you are considering needing or purchasing hearing aids or simply seeking further information as to why certain situations are a struggle to hear in.
The Communication Needs Assessment includes: otoscopy (a visual inspection of your ear canal and ear drum, checking for wax; wax removal will be completed if necessary), a diagnostic audiogram (air conduction, bone conduction, tympanometry, speech recognition threshold, speech discrimination in quiet, and uncomfortable loudness levels), Speech in Noise testing, and a cognitive screener. After testing is completed, a consult is given to discuss results, recommendations, and treatment plan options.
Hearing aids are only one piece of the puzzle when it comes to improving communication.
Our comprehensive auditory rehabilitation program will teach you the 5 Keys to Communication Success.
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You'll learn important tips to share with your friends and family members to help them become better communicators.
Hearing and listening are not the same things. We'll teach you simple strategies to boost your active listening skills.
There are lots of ways to modify your environment for successful communication, and we'll teach you all of them.
Your hearing aids will work best when you know how to properly use and care for them. By the end of this program, you'll be a tech expert!
Weekly "assignments" will give you fun and easy ways to practice what you've learned and create new successful communication habits.
