FAQs

 

Hearing aids come in all sorts of shapes and sizes.  We are very fortunate that technology advances have resulted in the miniaturisation of hearing aids.  There are two main types of hearing aids, ones that fit into the ear and ones that sit behind the ear.  A very small in the ear style is called CIC (completely-in-the-canal).  These aids are tucked right down into the ear canal and are very hard to see from any angle.  How tucked away they are does depend on the size of your ear canal though.  Recently there have been some major breakthroughs with behind-the-ear technology.  Some of the smallest hearing aids in the world now sit behind the ear.  These have a very thin tube attached which feeds the amplified sound into the ear canal.  This type of aid is typically much more comfortable to wear than an in-the-ear style of aid.  Below are some pictures of different styles of hearing aid.

In this case, a picture is worth a thousand words.  The two styles shown are those now most commonly fitted. 

Technology has made hearing aids so much smaller than they used to be.  How visible an aid is on a person's ear depends a lot on the size of their ear and whether or not they have a hair style that covers their ears.  The least noticeable aids are the completely-in-the-canal (CIC) type or the micro-behind-the-ear (micro-BTE) type (see above for how these styles look on a real ear). 

People are unique.  We all have different personalities, different friends and family members and we live in different houses which have different acoustics.  We also have differing social lives and most of us work in different jobs - which also have different acoustics.  These types of factors must be taken into account when hearing aids are selected for trial. At Clarity, we always try to match you, your wishes and your hearing situations with appropriate hearing aid technology and design.  Then we undergo a trial to see if we've got the match correct.  Only you can really tell if the hearing aids make a difference and the trial allows you to determine this because you get to use the hearing aids whilst you get on with your everyday life.  

Read about Clarity's hearing aid process.  We call it the seven steps to better hearing.

No, a referral is not necessary.  However, if your GP or Ear Specialist is currently treating you for an ear or hearing problem some background information from them would be very useful.  We like to make things easy for you, so feel free to contact us via phone, fax or email to ask us any questions and/or request an appointment.  Or you could request an appointment online and we will be in touch as soon as possible.
 

When you first walk in Clarity's door you will be greeted by one of our competent and friendly Support Staff.  You will be seen in clinic by one of our fully qualified and highly trained Audiologists who will listen to you and find out about your hearing needs before they proceed with any testing.  

Feel free to contact us to arrange an appointment or to ask us a question.  Or you might prefer to request an appointment online and we will be in touch with you as soon as possible

 

Read more about the symptoms of hearing loss.