In this section
The Nottingham Hearing Biomedical Research Unit has produced a series of informative videos, available on YouTube, specifically designed for new hearing aid users. All of the video clips are available by clicking here.
All NHS hearing aids are available free of charge. All of the hearing aids we fit in the Audiology department are digital and come in a range of colours. This means they can be programmed by a computer and adjusted to suit your individual hearing needs. You may choose to have a volume control or different programs available which can help you to hear in different listening environments. Alternatively you can have the hearing aid set to adjust itself automatically to suit the listening environment.
Open fit hearing aids
Open fit hearing aids consist of a hearing aid that sits behind your ear and a soft plastic dome and thin tube that goes in your ear canal. This hearing aid is best suited to patients that have a mild-to-moderate hearing loss. The benefit of this hearing aid is that it is very discrete and does not require an ear mould to be made.
Mould fit hearing aids
Mould fit hearing aids consist of a hearing aid that sits behind your ear and a mould which is made for the shape of your ear. This mould can be made of soft or hard material depending on your hearing loss and takes a couple of weeks to manufacture. These are made for moderate-to-profound hearing losses.
Hearing aid fitting
Following your hearing assessment, if you decide to trial a hearing aid(s), a hearing aid fitting appointment will be booked for approximately six weeks after the first appointment and will last for an hour. We will check the moulds fit well and make adjustments.
Fitting the hearing aids
The hearing aid(s) will be programmed for your hearing loss and for the size and shape of your ears. We will then make sure that the hearing aids are not too loud and offer you extra settings to use depending on the situations in which you struggle to hear the most.
How to use the hearing aid
We will explain the different controls of the hearing aid(s), how to change the batteries, how to keep them clean, and give information about our repairs services. We will show you how to use the hearing aid with the telephone and how to put it in and take it out of your ear. The audiologist will answer any questions that you might have about the hearing aid. They will organise an appointment in 6-8 weeks to see how you get on with your hearing aid.
Hearing Aid Follow-up Appointment
This appointment last 30 minutes and its aim is to see how you are getting on with the hearing aids and to manage any problems you are experiencing. We may go through a review of the situations that you struggle with and see if the hearing aid is helpful with these situations. This helps us gather information on what needs to be improved in fitting the hearing aids. We will give you information about what to do if your hearing aid stops working.
We do not usually book another appointment but you may request a reassessment of your hearing at any time.