SERVICES
HEARING EVALUATIONS
We begin the hearing evaluation by reviewing your medical history and learning about your lifestyle and specific hearing needs. Your audiologist will then examine your ear to look for any visible signs of obstruction or injury.
Your hearing will then be evaluated using a complete battery of audiometric tests. We will begin by finding the softest sounds you can hear across the range of speech frequencies. You will then be asked to repeat lists of words at a comfortable listening level. Repeating these words helps us determine your ability to not only hear speech, but understand speech. Finally, we will simulate real-life environments to test your ability to hear in background noise.
When testing is complete, we review your results in detail. Our audiologists are known for taking the time to thoroughly explain what your ear exam and hearing tests reveal about your hearing health. If your hearing evaluation reveals that you’re a candidate for amplification, we’ll thoroughly explain and discuss all appropriate options. If you do end up purchasing your hearing aids through us, the cost of your hearing evaluation is waived.
With over 40 years of experience, our doctors have a wealth of expertise to share, and you’ll never feel rushed as they answer all of your questions. Our goal is to educate and empower our patients to make the best choice for their hearing needs.
HEARING AID CONSULTATIONS
At Cedar Rapids Hearing Center we carry a wide variety of hearing instruments from leading manufacturers. We offer hearing aids to meet every lifestyle and budget, and we take the time to educate our patients about all of their options.
If it’s determined during your hearing evaluation that you’re a candidate for hearing aids, we’ll carefully review the best models for your specific needs and lifestyle. We may also review the various assistive listening devices (ALDs) that are useful for additional amplification. These include TV listening devices, telephone amplifiers, alarm clocks, and warning devices to offer extra help when needed.
Our hearing aid consultations are also available for patients who purchased their hearing aids elsewhere. We can test the performance of the hearing aids and adjust them to precisely meet your current hearing capacity. If you’re interested in learning about recent advancements in hearing aid technology, we’re happy to take the time to discuss this as well.
All of our hearing aids include our exclusive Complete Hearing Health Care package, which includes:
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Quarterly cleanings and adjustments
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Yearly audiometric evaluations
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Yearly hearing aid evaluations
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Three year loss & damage insurance
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Three year warranty
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Batteries provided for the life of the hearing aids
Contact our office to learn more about which hearing aids or ALDs can help your specific needs.
HEARING AID FITTINGS
Hearing aids are incredible feats of technology and millions of people benefit from improved hearing because of them. However, even the most advanced hearing aid models can fall short when not properly adjusted. Precision adjustments and accurate hearing assessments are our specialty. We’ve been helping patients hear better since 1999.
Once you’ve selected the best hearing aid model for your lifestyle and hearing requirements, your hearing aids will be fitted to your ears and adjusted specifically for your unique needs. We then schedule follow-up appointments each week during your 30-day trial period, to ensure your hearing aids are adjusted properly. It will take some time to acclimate to your new instruments and we will be by your side every step of the way.
After the trial period is complete, we schedule quarterly follow-up appointments for adjustments and cleanings. We also perform annual hearing evaluations to help monitor and support your hearing health. When hearing aids are purchased through us, all of these follow-up services are complementary, as part of our Complete Hearing Health Care program.
HEARING AID REPAIR & SERVICE
At Cedar Rapids Hearing Center we service and repair all makes and models of hearing instruments from any hearing aid manufacturer. Many repairs can be performed in-house. However, there are instances when the hearing aid must go back to the manufacturer. If your hearing aid needs to be sent in to the manufacturer for repair, we can provide a loaner hearing aid at your request.
Under our Complete Hearing Health Care Program, we encourage all of our patients to come in for a regular hearing aid cleaning at no charge, as preventative maintenance.
CAPTION CALL
Hearing aids alone are sometimes not the complete answer for people with hearing loss. Assistive listening devices (ALDs) may enable you to enhance the benefit your hearing aids can provide.
We readily encourage our patients to consider using CaptionCall as a way to help them stay connected and enjoy clear conversations over the phone. A type of ALD, CaptionCall is considered one of the best phone captioning telephones and services on the market.
Similar to how captions work on the television, CaptionCall uses advanced technology to transcribe what your caller is saying on a large, easy-to- read screen. Calling people is no different than how it’s always been, except that with CaptionCall, you can read what they’re saying nearly as fast as they say it!
Contact our office to learn more about how CaptionCall can make your life easier.
CUSTOM EAR MOLDS & EAR PLUGS
As always, prevention is the best medicine, and caring for your hearing health is no exception. Custom earmolds and high quality ear plugs are by far the most effective way to protect your hearing, especially if you anticipate being in a loud environment.
We provide all types of custom earmolds – for hearing aids, noise protection, and in-ear musician monitors. These custom-fit earmolds are also excellent for keeping the ear canal dry and clean for all underwater activities.
Whatever level of protection you need, we’re equipped to get you covered! Contact us to learn more.
CERUMEN MANAGEMENT
Cerumen, or earwax, is produced in the ear canal to lubricate and protect the ear from debris. While cerumen production is typically not a problem for most people, certain situations and conditions can cause our ears to overproduce it, resulting in blockages that can disrupt hearing and cause inflammation or pain. Symptoms of a cerumen blockage can include an earache or tenderness of the ear, a sensation of pressure in the ear, ringing in the ears (also known as tinnitus), and even sudden hearing loss. Once your audiologist clears this blockage, these symptoms are often immediately relieved.
Despite their common usage, cotton swabs are not effective tools for clearing out excess cerumen. The use of cotton swabs can worsen the accumulation by packing earwax deeper into the ear canal. Other over-the- counter earwax removal systems can also prove to be ineffective for serious blockages.
At Cedar Rapids Hearing Center we’re fully equipped to deal with all types of cerumen buildup. Our expertise with the various causes of excess cerumen production can also help you prevent another blockage in the future.
If you’re dealing with the discomfort of cerumen buildup, contact us today to find the relief you need!
