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As we know, Social Distancing is one of the more effective ways to stop the spread of Covid-19. For many Seniors with chronic and other major health issues, the case for Social Distancing is even stronger as it is reducing exposure. Telehealth has therefore been in the news lately as an alternative to face to face interaction, but what is it? Telehealth—also known as “digital health”, “eHealth”, “remote care”, and “distance support”—is the practice of using the cell phone and internet to deliver health care. When it comes to hearing, we call telehealth for tele-audiology.
Tele-Audiology reduces the risk
“With Tele-audiology, the challenge of distance is eliminated. Apps on smartphones enable remote consultations and the delivery of hearing aid programming even if our client and consultants are hundreds of miles apart.” Says Raphael Cheron, Owner of Sounds Good!
Tele-audiology is a virtual hearing care platform that connects hearing healthcare professionals with their patients. It is a tool that can help Seniors at risk to address their hearing needs in the face of the Covied-19 pandemic. Tele-audiology is “made for this moment in time” as people can meet their hearing healthcare professionals instantly, anywhere, at any time, without putting themselves at any risk.
How does it work?
Many hearing aid brands come with smartphone apps. Apart from giving you better control of hearing aid features, the great thing about these apps is remote access. Our hearing care professional can remotely program your hearing aids via the app without having you come into our office in Burnsville or St. Louis Park. The best part is, with much of the latest hearing technology featuring built-in remote programming capabilities, our hearing care professional is often able to diagnose problems, change and adjust settings on your devices,
Are you wondering if your hearing aids can be programmed this way? Just contact us and we will let you know. If yes, we can walk you through the steps of downloading the app on your cell phone. If not, we can still touch base by another audio-visual way such as FaceTime or Zoom. It will still be useful, although not all problems can be solved this way as we cannot program the hearing aids.
We believe that tele-audiology is a modern way of providing hearing healthcare to people in a more efficient and effective manner without sacrificing quality care. Across healthcare, more and more services are being redesigned to give patients the opportunity to get access to quality care without having to wait for appointments or drive long distances
Tele-Audiology has limitations
However, there are limits to the current remote hearing care services. Following MN state laws, you still need to visit us for the initial hearing test and hearing aid fitting, as well any necessary adjustments to the physical fit of your hearing aids like selection of the right wires, ear tips or molds. We also believe that real-ear measurement (REM) is an important test as it verifies your hearing aids are on target with your unique sound prescription.
Additionally, not all hearing aids work with tele-audiology services. First, you’ll need to have a pair of Bluetooth-enabled hearing aids from one of the leading brands. Secondly, you’ll need to own a modern iPhone or Android smartphone.
Tele-Audiology will be a critical part of the patient experience
At Sounds Good! we are proud to be among the first in our industry and the Twin Cities to step up to provide tele-audiology to our clients. We are excited to offer hearing healthcare services from consultations to hearing aid programming to people from the comfort of their own home. As a matter of fact, we also want to offer our patients a better experience and one of our core values is to provide accessibility to better hearing. We are already offering Concierge Services, free hearing tests and a free no obligation 14-day hearing aid trial to make it as easier to access top-quality service, products and genuine, honest advice on the best hearing solution for you. Our goal is to connect you with the right devices, services, technology, or other assistance whether or not we are the ones to provide them. Every time you come to Sounds Good!, you can relax knowing you are in caring hands.