Hear In Private Practice

Continuing last week’s post about UHC and Big Box stores going straight to retail for hearing healthcare, several topics must be focused on and dealt with soon.  The first, which is the subject of today’s post, is the difference between a hearing aid and a personal sound amplifier product (PSAP).  According to the FDA,  A hearing aid is a wearable sound-amplifying

This past week has been a struggle  – in my office, at home, and in the news.  Along with all of these events I learned that United HealthCare and Best Buy are going direct to consumers and my favorite great innovator, Steve Jobs passed away.  There is so much information from  the first  events that they will consume a few

I wrote previously about combining the best of the retail and medical scheduling models to streamline our practices, yet still accommodate emergency appointments.  To help solve this problem, our appointment times tend to be longer than other practices and we know those specific patients who need more time.  With a simple email or phone call ahead, we are usually able

I had the privilege of hearing Hawkeye Richardson speak at our local business club.  He believes most people really miss the boat when it comes to using social media.  We now live in a world of technology, automatically using computers or smart phones to promote our business. But we have forgotten that the first “social media” was good old face-to-face interaction.  He

A question I often get is, “How did you become an audiologist?” When I was growing up, I never imagined myself working in the health care arena.  In college, I could not even see beyond the next semester!  When I finally declared a major, I chose Education, only because that is what my mother did.  She was exceptionally calm – an angel on earth.  I, however, was a

In our News Watch by David Kirkwood, he reported upon several studies that would be beneficial to us professionals who fit hearing devices. We need to spread the word of these studies, through our office as well as our professional contacts. The first thing we need to communicate  is that hearing devices really are working.  The study from the Better

Every day I am amazed at how technology has changed my perspective on the world.  I was chatting with my father recently about how I used to write my reports using the shelf lined with encyclopedias in the basement.  I still remember just looking through them and I recall some of the pictures that fascinated me.  Now, when my children

Since the beginning, our practice has sent letters to patients for their birthdays and, especially, for hearing aid warranty renewals, since many of manufacturers will renew warranties through five years.  After the manufacturer warranty renewals expire, we still send reminders for annual exams and then introduce incentives to upgrade.  When the manufacturers’ warranties are no longer available, third party hearing

One of my favorite stories from a mentor of mine, Dr. Earl Harford, started with an innocent question from his daughter.  “Daddy, what do you do all day?”  He said he thought about all of the hearing exams, hearing aid fittings, follow ups, and he just could not find a nice concise way of telling his young daughter what he

An Elevator Speech (statement or pitch) is something simple that many of us do, I am sure, without knowing.  This little pitch is how you describe yourself and what you do in as little as 30 seconds to 2 minutes.  This time period is approximately the span of an elevator ride.  It can be done in several different forms, by