There will be a lot of questions during the fitting appointment. That is why comfort and quality are a core part of the experience at Bay Area Hearing Care Professionals. Hearing aid fittings are crucial for ensuring that hearing aids work effectively and comfortably for the user. A proper fitting involves adjusting the device to fit the individual’s unique ear canal shape and hearing needs, which can greatly improve their ability to hear and communicate.
Without a proper fitting, the hearing aid may not work as intended and could cause discomfort or irritation, making it less likely that the user will continue to wear it. By providing the right answers, a board-certified specialist can ease a patient into the new prescription.
Hearing Aid Fitting
The first time you go to a fitting, you will receive aa plethora of helpful information. You can prepare for the appointment by gaining a better understanding of the process. It may even help to bring along a friend or a loved one to help during the appointment. When the device is finally active, being able to hear a familiar voice can lower anxiety.
A fitting appointment is scheduled after the hearing aid evaluation. Since you know which model is prescribed, do extra research on its features. Preparing your phone with the associated app and reading an online hearing device manual is a good start. Don’t go overboard, but make it a point to familiarize yourself with the basic options. Write down questions you have about the device and its current prescription. You never want to leave a fitting with unanswered questions, so writing them down is necessary.
Problem solving and adjustments are part of the hearing aid fitting. By getting the most important problems out of the way, the focus can shift to finding the best hearing adjustments. Try to remember that wearing hearing aids for the first time is an emotional experience. For a moment, it will feel like a new world is being introduced to your ears.
Live Speech Mapping
At the fitting, your board-certified specialist will work hard to make the prescription as accurate as possible. The hearing device arrives from the manufacturer preprogrammed, but still requires some fine tuning before fulltime use. Real ear measurement is used as a way of verifying the optimal settings for a hearing aid. This is the best way to confirm that the device is performing at the highest level possible.
Live speech mapping is another form of real ear measurement that provides much higher accuracy. It allows the board-certified specialist to see what the wearer is hearing in real time. Based off of the verification results, the prescription is set up to better match the needs of the wearer. This is the best way to maximize a modern hearing aid to prevent unnecessary appointments in the future.