Did you know that in-home care services will make sure your loved one has the transportation they need to keep their hearing aids serviced and fitted properly? The home care provider will also remind your loved one to wear their hearing aid and help them to keep it put away when showering or going to bed.
Effects of hearing loss
It’s important to keep hearing aids maintained properly by an experienced technician. Hearing loss has a significant negative effect on a person’s quality of life and overall well-being. It affects the emotional and social health of the affected person. When your elderly dear one can’t hear properly, she can’t communicate very effectively.
The elderly population is more affected by hearing loss than any other demographic group. While hearing loss isn’t an expected result of aging, it certainly is associated with it for a number of reasons. Adults who worked in careers with high noise levels such as construction are more likely to experience hearing loss. Some medications prescribed for other illnesses may have an effect on hearing.
Causes of hearing loss
Undiagnosed and untreated infections in the inner ears can also damper the ability to hear clearly. Because there are so many possibilities of things that can affect hearing, the best option is to take your loved one to their doctor and have the hearing loss checked. Once your doctor has eliminated other possible causes, it’s time to go see a hearing specialist.
If it’s determined that a hearing aid will be of benefit, the specialist will consult about which types of hearing aids will work the best. The hearing aid will usually be made to fit your parent, and you will be given instructions on use and care and what to do if it needs servicing or maintenance.
Servicing and maintenance
It’s important to keep the hearing aids working and in use, because statistics show elderly people who can’t hear tend to become withdrawn, lonely and sometimes even isolated and depressed. When you find the hearing aids just aren’t working properly, it’s not a good idea to tinker with them on your own. The technology is specific and should only be maintained by a qualified professional. Usually they are covered by a warranty of some type and you can just take them back to the place of purchased to have the problem fixed.
If your dear one is complaining about too much background noise coming through, speak to someone at the hearing aid office. There are usually adjustments that can be made to help filter out some of the white noise so the sound coming through is clearer. Think of hearing aids in the same way as glasses. They are important to increasing your parent’s confidence in communicating with the world around them.