How do you find an Audiologist to work with?

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Gregor

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I've been wearing HAs for about 6 years now, and unhappy with my current audiologist, who is the guy my Mom used.

How do I look for a new one? Is there somewhere I can find ratings?

Lots of hits on "Audiologists in <zip>", but beyond that.....

Thanks!
 
Have you tried asking your doctor if they know of any other audiologists ? what about your friends , do have any that use an audiologist? I was going to the same audiologist for years but he hired a new person to and her job was to call people when their HA came back from repair and the woman was not doing this! She called you when she felt like it!! I now go to an audiologist that closer to my home!
 
i used the trial and error method..might not be good for you if you have to pay each visit..i'm from canada we don't pay..but maybe try rate md or whatever ..there are sites that rate doctors and specialists just google!:)
 
if you have friends that go to audiologists, ask them for feedback. Ask your doctor if he recommends an audiologist. Find a phone book and call around, ask them questions on how they'd deal with your hearing loss, hearing aids, etc.

My parents always took me to the University's audiology and speech center until I reached high school, then an audie moved here from that department and opened his own practice. I started going to him until last year when new audie moved into the office and he himself left (and I'm much happier with the new audie, old one did some shady business).
 
I don't have any friends who go to audiologists. My doctor runs a hearing aid dispensing firm, but their offices are very inconvenient for me. I was hoping there might be some ratings similar to Yelp or Urbanspoon...
 
ENT clinic hospitals. I have used St Michaels & Sunnybrook-Toronto.

Implanted A B Harmony activated Aug/07
 
ENT clinic hospitals. I have used St Michaels & Sunnybrook-Toronto.

Implanted A B Harmony activated Aug/07
 
Umm... you can make friends with others to help you find people/things like that!

These are the friends that I recommend...
- Yellow Pages
- Google

:thumb:
 
Do you attend ASL/Deaf socials? Asking people at Deaf events for a referral is the best way. That's how I found my HOH audi, whom I love. Having an audi who wears HAs is the best! Good luck!
 
If the audis have "contact us" (by web/email) on their websites, send them an email asking some questions that will help you determine if they're a "good fit". If their replies sound like all they're interested in is selling you HAs, then I'd say "no good". I contacted my current audi via email when I was shopping for a new one. Of course, not all audis have email addresses posted.
 
sallylou said:
Do you attend ASL/Deaf socials? Asking people at Deaf events for a referral is the best way. That's how I found my HOH audi, whom I love. Having an audi who wears HAs is the best! Good luck!
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Actually I don't. This is the first time I've tried reaching out to this community. I don't sign. Word discrimination scores for me on a good day are in the 40-60% range on the left, 25-40% on the right.

The audi I have an appointment to see has been doing this since the 1970's so maybe he's doing something right?
 
Gregor said:
The audi I have an appointment to see has been doing this since the 1970's so maybe he's doing something right?
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Yes, that could possibly be the case. It could also be an indication that he has experience with a long track record.
 
Could also be possible that he's thinking about retirement sometime soon, especially if he started in the early '70s. Check to see if there are one or two younger audis in the office to give some continuity.
 
Beach girl said:
Could also be possible that he's thinking about retirement sometime soon, especially if he started in the early '70s. Check to see if there are one or two younger audis in the office to give some continuity.
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That's a good point! Thanks!
 
I had a relatively young audi and she was awful. Her practice was primarily age-related hearing loss. I found someone who works with the Deaf community and I'm much happier. If you don't like the first audi, keep on going.
 
sally, did it take you quite a while to find that second person?
my husband's audi has been retired now for a while. That clinic was typical of what you describe, and hubby's criteria for a new one are different than mine - his background as an engineer/electronics person means he wants to talk"tech" with someone, and he has no affiliation with Deaf.
I would ideally like someone who knows ASL or at least supports it and is involved in the Deaf community.
 
dogmom said:
sally, did it take you quite a while to find that second person?
my husband's audi has been retired now for a while. That clinic was typical of what you describe, and hubby's criteria for a new one are different than mine - his background as an engineer/electronics person means he wants to talk"tech" with someone, and he has no affiliation with Deaf.
I would ideally like someone who knows ASL or at least supports it and is involved in the Deaf community.
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You mean you plan to buy hearing aids for yourself? Otherwise, I would think your husband would be happier if he got the techie audiologist.

I am interested in the technology too.
 
I do too. I want an audi who is really up-to-date on tech stuff, knows which aids come with what type of accessories to improve hearing in various conditions - staff meetings, noisy events, listening to music, etc.

There seems to a "sweet spot" when looking for someone who is experienced, savvy, and in-tune with what a client needs. Roughly 10 to 20 years of experience seems to be a good fit. I've not had luck with the kids who are fresh out of school; they seem to have more of a "one size fits all" orientation.

My favorite audi is married to an engineer who has a significant hearing loss. Best of both worlds - he knows his stuff about how things can be wired up and what he would like to see happen with various combinations of assistance devices, and she knows hers re: hearing technology. They are a dynamite combination.

Unfortunately they live nearly 800 miles away from where I live now. I still usually go in to see her when I'm visiting family, though, just to see what's new.
 
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