A Hearing Evaluation is Designed To Identify Your Unique Hearing Profile

What to Expect, and How to Prepare For Your Evaluation

The sense of hearing is a primary element in our world today and as such it requires a treatment plan encompassing far more than the sale of a hearing instrument. We believe in treating the entire hearing system, not just selling a product and moving on to the next patient; but rather, the experience and journey we will share together for many years to come. Our philosophy is improve your ability to understand the speech details of our spoken language, locate the direction of human speech, reduce the energy and effort it takes to hear in background noise, and to personalize your treatment plan to suit your needs. In order to boost your hearing ability and achieve these goals, our treatment plans are designed as a comprehensive approach and outlined below.

1. Clinical Hearing Evaluations

Unlike many “FREE SCREENING OFFERS” our Clinical Hearing Evaluation is a comprehensive diagnostic process involving both subjective and objective measures. Performed by a Board Certified Audiologist, Audiology Assistant, and Hearing Instrument Specialists, our clinical assessment protocol includes an intake process whereby you outline your concerns, struggles, and objectives before we proceed onto the objective measurements and analysis. We will proceed to check for medical concerns by performing full tympanometry testing to check the functionality of your ear drum, followed by the traditional pure tone beeping test, and then proceed to the real-world portion which involves the spoken word. Our word testing includes words in quiet and words in noise; this testing will tell us how you currently hear human speech in quiet, in noisy places, and how you would hear those same words after our proposed treatment plan (a before and after score). 

2. The Journey To Improved Speech Understanding

Increasing speech understanding, working memory, and the ability to hear better in background noise is not as simple as buying a hearing aid. Our treatment plans are based upon the scientific knowledge that our hearing system is made up of two ears and your brain. Purchasing a device that “makes things louder” is not the solution to improving clarity and understanding, so our treatment plans focus on improving the entire system, two ears and your brain, to amplify and decode sounds waves that will be meaningful information for your brain to process in its auditory cortex. This philosophy, which is not instant gratification, allows us to guarantee the restoration of your hearing to its fullest potential ability over the course of your personalized treatment plan.

3. Learning To Listen Again With Brain Stimulation

Hearing and listening are often used as synonyms, yet they are each unique cognitive processes. Hearing can be defined as simply “perceiving sound” whereas listening is a far more sophisticated task; listening is defined as “attributing meaning to sound.” This is the basis for our comprehensive training program which takes our practice from the detection of hearing loss to a program of total rehabilitation and active, engaged living for our patients. As you may be aware, as your hearing diminished over time, so did your brain’s ability to orient, localize, and focus on the speech sounds you want to hear. Think of this stage of treatment as the “physical therapy” for your ears. Our treatment process will include an orientation, one on one tutoring, and some simple training for you to complete in order to reintroduce and allow your brain to properly process the restored sounds. Our auditory and brain stimulation program will help you think faster, focus better, and remember more of what you hear.

4. Ongoing Relationship And Personalization Of Hearing Needs

Your hearing care needs continue to change throughout life and because of this we value our ongoing relationship. As we fulfill the steps above, we will continue to work with you for years to come by providing service, cleanings, and ongoing support for years to come. Your hearing will be re-evaluated every year and your hearing devices personalized to your current situations and prescription. When you work with us, you have a partner in better hearing for life and we would forward to seeing you whenever you need our help.