Your First Visit to Our Hearing Clinic: What to Expect
By: Susan Flynn, M.Sc., RAUD, RHIP Manager, Clinical Operations & Training
Like any new experience, having your hearing tested for the first time can be intimidating. At Wavefront Centre, a hearing test is $75 for adults and includes a detailed 1.5-hour assessment of your hearing ability, speech understanding ability, and communication needs. Our friendly customer service specialists will put you at ease as soon as you walk through our doors. Here are five steps to expect when visiting us for your first hearing test.
Step 1: Form Completion
Before your appointment, you will receive several electronic forms to complete via email. If you do not have time before your scheduled appointment, our staff will help you fill in the appropriate paperwork upon your arrival.
Step 2: Meeting with Your Hearing Care Professional
Once you complete the forms, you will meet with one of our Hearing Care Professionals (HCP). Your HCP will start by asking what brings you in to have your hearing tested today, followed by some hearing and general health questions. You will then move to an audiometric booth, also called a sound booth, for testing.
Step 3: Tympanometry
Once in the sound booth, the HCP visually inspects your ears for wax and any abnormalities. If the ear canals are clear, the HCP will perform a test called tympanometry by placing a small probe in your ear canals. Tympanometry tests the functioning of your eardrum. The HCP will then set you up for the hearing test by placing small foam earplugs inside your ear canal and giving you a response button.
Step 4: Your Diagnostic Hearing Test
It is now time for your hearing test. The HCP will instruct you on what to do. First, you will hear a series of beeps through the earphones. When you hear a beep, you will press the response button. If hearing loss is present, the HCP will run through the beeps again, this time by playing the beeps through a headband placed on your skull. The HCP will then conduct a series of speech tests and finish with a speech-in-noise test.
Step 5: Your Hearing Test Results
Once the hearing test is complete, the HCP will review your results and answer any questions you may have. If a medical referral is warranted, the HCP will ask for your permission to send your hearing test to your family doctor. If hearing loss is present, and a referral is not required, your HCP will ask if you would like to discuss hearing loss solutions. A follow- appointment may be booked based on your discussion.
The Wavefront Difference
For over 67 years, Wavefront Centre, a registered charitable organization, has proudly served Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing British Columbians and their families. Our hearing clinic operates as a social enterprise, meaning that all profits it generates support our many initiatives.
Read more about our story here https://www.wavefrontcentre.ca/about-us/our-story/
