Tune-up

Inspection and Service

19-point Hearing Aid Tune-up

Regular maintenance and cleaning are an important part of prolonging the longevity of your device, ensuring it’s working to its best potential.

Prescription hearing aids are a long-term investment.

Without regular cleaning, the performance of your devices will begin to deteriorate, and it won’t be long until you notice the difference in your hearing.

At Pacific Hearing Service, our experienced and highly qualified audiologists and staff follow a methodological approach that evaluates all aspects of your devices.

If you have noticed that you are not hearing as well as you used to with your prescription hearing aids, the 19-point inspection will help us determine if they are malfunctioning or if we need to evaluate your hearing for possible changes.

The 19-point inspection is the best way to keep your hearing aids working up to specifications, ensuring you are getting the maximum benefit from your devices.

Your 19 Point Inspection

#1 - What Is a 19 Point Inspection?

The 19-point inspection is our way of ensuring that you get the best possible performance from your hearing devices throughout their entire life.

#2 - Why Do I Need a 19 Point Inspection?

You want to make sure your hearing devices work as well today as when they were brand new. Hearing aids are sophisticated electronic devices that must work in a hostile environment containing moisture, earwax, debris, dust, oils from your fingertips, etc. After hundreds of hours, this exposure can lead to failure of electronic parts. It can be difficult for you to notice this degradation because it happens slowly over time. You may think your hearing has changed, the person you are talking to has a soft voice (mumbles), or that the background noise is the culprit. The 19-point inspection identifies any issues with the electronics or other components of the hearing device.

#3 - What happens if my hearing device fails the 19-point inspection?

We often find problems before our patients notice them—a hearing aid may be a bit weak, or have some distortion. Since most hearing aids are under warranty, we can have them serviced for no additional charge. We’ve got your back by providing you with loaners to keep you connected and going strong. We also handle all the processing including completing paperwork, shipping, and instructions to the manufacturer. We perform a full 19-point inspection upon the return of the instrument to ensure the problems were corrected. We contact you when your hearing aid has passed our quality control to schedule a convenient time for you to pick it and have it paired to your other hearing aid and phone.

#4 - What is ANSI?

Step #15 of our 19-point inspection is the most technical. Hearing aids are medical devices that must meet ANSI (American National Standards Institute) specifications for maximum power output, gain, distortion, equivalent input noise, and battery drain. We evaluate every hearing aid that comes into our clinic using these criteria. When hearing aids do not meet these specifications, we either repair/replace components and then retest, or send them to the manufacturer for repair. We also verify that the directional microphones are functioning properly, a vital step taken by fewer than 30% of clinics in the US.

#5 - How often should I have a 19-point inspection?

Clinics across the country have found that patient satisfaction is highest when hearing devices are inspected every 6 months. In between 19 points, we encourage all of our patients to take regular advantage of our complimentary cleaning service.

Your 30-minute appointment includes:

  1. Individual session with a Doctor of Audiology
  2. Listening check of hearing aid to assess clarity of sound and proper amplification
  3. Visual inspection of device for cracks, debris, or any indication of a problem
  4. Otoscopic inspection of ears
  5. Shell or earmold disinfection and ultrasonic cleaning of domes, earmolds and tubing
  6. Battery contact cleaning (on non-rechargeable)
  7. Hearing aid dehumidification
  8. Microphone debris suction
  9. Replacement of microphone covers or filters
  10. Receiver debris suction and wax guard replacement
  11. Vent cleaning
  12. Dome replacement (RIC hearing aids only)
  13. Earmold tubing change (BTE and thin tube hearing aids only)
  14. Earhook replacement (BTE hearing aids only)
  15. ANSI (American National Standards Institute) electroacoustic analysis on computer of hearing aid performance to meaure it meets manufacturer’s specifications
  16. Electroacoustic analysis of directional microphone performance
  17. Electroacoustic analysis of battery drain (when appropriate)
  18. Datalogging: to learn your personal preferences (e.g. turning volume up or down or changing programs) allowing us to customize programs more precisely for you.
  19. Pairing hearing aids to iPhones, Androids, iPads: installing Apps that will work with your hearing devices

In addition, at this appointment we will give you the batteries we estimate you will need until your next service appointment in 6 months (based on manufacturers’ estimates of battery use for your hearing aid and your use pattern).

Schedule Your Inspection

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Partnering with you to help you reach your hearing potential!

What Our Patients

Have to Say

"The Most Proffesional and Thorough Hearing Test In My Entire Life"

by Fran W

"The Testing is Thorough and The Care Is Professional at Pacific Hearing Service"

by A happy client

Resources

// PACIFIC HEARING SERVICE //

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