Dr Vass Hearing Clinic

15/10/2021

WARNING: Masks make a great slingshot!!!
The use of surgical masks is a necessary thing in the age of COVID-19. But users of hearing aids need to be very careful when removing a mask as the elastic bit on the mask can launch a hearing aid causing damage or loss.
If possible, try removing your mask and hearing aid together so you can see the hearing aid. If you remove the mask first, then check to make sure the hearing aid is still on your ear.
If you lose your hearing aid homeowners/contents insurance may cover the loss. Check with your insurer. Most people who are covered under the government program (Office of Hearing Services) can get replacement hearing aids for free or for a nominal fee, although top-up (partially subsidized) hearing aids may incur additional costs.
Masks also make it difficult for many hard of hearing people to communicate. The ACT and NSW governments have made an exemption for hard of hearing people so that they can remove masks when communicating if they maintain a 1.5 metre social distance.
If you damage or lose your hearing, contact your clinic and discuss repair or replacement.

28/10/2020

Do I Need Hearing Aids?
I am often asked this question and rarely answer with a definite yes or no. I am a believer in a well-informed patient making their own decisions without pressure or sales hype. So, if you are asking this question, then consider the following.
A hearing test is an excellent place to start. Stay away from ‘free hearing tests’ as these are usually used to get people in the door and sell them hearing aids. Hearing tests should be done by independent and qualified professionals, not salespeople.
You might think the results of the hearing test will determine if you need hearing aids. While the hearing test results are important, the hearing test only tells part of the story. Self-assessment tools may offer even more insight into whether you should trial hearing aids?
A great self-assessment tool was developed by Catherine Palmer and her colleagues at the University of Pittsburgh. They asked patients to rate their hearing from one to ten (one being the worse and ten being the best). They found that patients who rated their hearing from one to five were ready to trial hearing aids, from six to seven were undecided, and from eight to ten were not ready. These findings were independent of the hearing test. In some cases, a person with a significant hearing loss still rated their ability to hear in the eight to ten range.
I adopted Palmer’s self-assessment tool some years back, and I have found my results to be very consistent with their findings. By self-assessing your hearing loss, you may be better equipped to answer the question, ‘do I need hearing aids’?
Once you feel it is time to act, do not put off getting help. Seek the advice of an independent professional.
Reference: Palmer CV, Solodar HS, Hurley WR, Byrne DC and Williams KO. (2009) Self-Perception of Hearing Ability as a Strong Predictor of Hearing Aid Purchase. J Am Acad Audiol.20:341-347.

22/05/2019

REALLY!!!!
I thought things might one day improve with respect to the sale of hearing aids. But this week I had a patient come to me for a second opinion about her hearing loss. She brought the results of her ‘free’ hearing test from a large retail chain. Turns out she didn’t have a hearing loss according to her test. So, I was shocked that the audiologist/sales person told her she needed two hearing aids at a cost of $8000. This recommendation was probably the result of the audiologist/sales person needing to meet some sales target for the month. I’m not sure where this audiologists/sales person went to school but they must not teach ethics at that school (or else this person forgot that they are supposed to act in the best interest of their patient and not out of greed). Such behaviour disgusts me and I hope that exposing this might warn people about unethical behaviour before they pay a lot of money for something they don’t need.

07/02/2019

This is exactly what I've been talking about!!!! Have a listen and please share this post.

The hearing aid industry has been put on notice for hiking up prices and misleading consumers about the effectiveness of some devices.

05/02/2019

‘89 Year Old Pensioner Robbed of $15,000.’
Were the police called??? No, because this crime took place in a business not on the street. Every day people are being ‘sold’ hearing aids they either don’t need or can’t afford because of greed. Let me say as a clinician who’s been around a long time, no pair of hearing aids is worth $15,000. There is no independent research that disputes this statement but people are told they must spend big to solve their hearing problems.

There is no regulation in Australia of hearing aid sales. Anyone can sell hearing aids and there has been an increase in the use of salespeople instead of clinicians. Added to this fact, over 85% of hearing aids are sold by eight companies, many of the these companies are manufacturing the hearing aids and then selling them through their own retail chains. Imagine a drug company owning your local chemist.

I’m fed up with people getting robbed and government doing nothing to stop it. Hearing impairment is marginalized or ignored by government. NDIS is a great example of this (you have to be very hard of hearing to qualify) or consider the House of Representatives Committee’s Still Waiting to Be Heard report. Of the report’s 22 recommendations only one recommendation was accepted. Looks like we’re still waiting to be heard!!!!

Perhaps it’s time for the hearing impaired citizens of Australia to come to Canberra to protest. Maybe showing up to support reform is the only way we will finally be heard.

30/11/2018

Wow!!
I had a patient in for a second opinion this week who said she had recently been to a hearing aid shop where the salesperson told her that if she didn’t get hearing aids, then she would develop dementia. Wow. I was really amazed that anyone would make such a comment, but this patient is not the first person to have told me this story.
There is a correlation between cognitive decline and hearing loss. It is well documented that hearing loss can lead to depression, anxiety, isolation and that hearing loss is linked to dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease as a risk factor. However, if you have hearing loss it does not automatically mean that you will develop dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease.
What motives a salesperson to make such a claim? The answer is money. If you can scare a person into believing they will develop dementia or Alzheimer’s Disease, then you probably have a ‘sale’ and you will receive thousands of dollars in sales commission.
Hopefully, people will not fall for such unethical sales tactics. If you, or anyone you know is told this lie, you need to have nothing more to do with this salesperson and seek qualified and professional advice.

02/10/2018

https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/leading-australian-hearing-clinic-pays-penalties-for-misleading-customers
I hope everyone enjoyed the long weekend and is feeling refreshed. This came to my attention over the weekend and once again I am grateful to the ACCC for their focus on the hearing industry.

Australian Hearing Services has paid penalties totalling $37,800 after the ACCC issued three infringement notices alleging the Australian Government owned corporation engaged in false or misleading conduct in connection with the supply of hearing services to consumers. The ACCC also accepted a court...

18/09/2018

Dr Vass welcomes the ACCC's action against a large hearing aid retailer for misleading advertisements targeting pensioners. https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-takes-action-against-hearing-aid-retailers-for-misleading-pensioners

Once again this highlights the need for those indivduals requiring hearing services to know their rights.
- Always seek out an independent practioner
- Always ask questions regarding their motives
- Are they being paid commisions or do they need to met sales targets?
- Who owns the company?

If in doubt of your rights you can call our practice on
02 6282 2717 for clarification. We are happy to assist!
You can access the full report here: https://www.accc.gov.au/media-release/accc-takes-action-against-hearing-aid-retailers-for-misleading-pensioners

Dr Vass is an independent doctor of audiology and has been proudly serving the Canberra region for over 20 years.

07/09/2018

What are we really paying for when we go for the lowest price possible?

Big hearing aid companies are driven by sales. They are not driven by solutions. Their practitioners are paid to make targets and to push clients into buying their products, whether or not they actually need them. This is greed before need, and Australian patients are losing when we choose a saved dollar over our hearing health. To find out more, follow this link - https://www.drvasshearing.com.au/no-competition-big-companies/

Image via Pinterest.

22/08/2018

At Dr Vass Hearing we believe in putting patients before profits.

08/08/2018

Happy International Cat Day for yesterday! I have many cat questions on my instagram page 🐱🐱🐾

08/08/2018

Dr Vass is answering questions today on Instastories today - He has been quizzed on many subjects from his sales stance, hearing questions and even how many cats does he own!