by Neil Bauman, Ph.D.
Traditionally, hearing aid users, which includes me, have been less than satisfied with their hearing aids. In fact, between 1989 and 2000, only 54% to 60% of hearing aid users were happy with their hearing aids.
However, in the past year or so, things have changed for the better. Those who have purchased hearing aids in the past year or so are much more satisfied than previously was the case. In fact, the rate of satisfaction jumped up to 77.5% in 2004 according to the latest MarkeTrak survey!
Also, the number of hearing aids that are tossed in the dresser drawer to languish there has decreased from 17.9% in 1994 to only 3.8% in 2004 for those who had purchased new hearing aids in the past year.
This is good news for hard of hearing people. Obviously the design and features in the latest hearing aids are meeting the needs of more and more hard of hearing people, accounting for this sudden change in user satisfaction.
Thus, if you are not satisfied with your current hearing aids, and they are several years old now, you may be pleasantly surprised at how much better you like the latest hearing aids. At the very least, maybe you should check out some of the latest models and see how well they work for you.
As for me, I’m keeping my eye on the new Adaptive Dynamic Range Optimization (ADRO) technology that is beginning to be used in hearing aids. Maybe this will finally make me a satisfied hearing aid user.