Miracle-Ear® Hearing Aids: The Pros & Cons
Looking for information on Miracle-Ear® hearing aids in Raleigh, NC? While a scheduled appointment and a fully qualified hearing evaluation is the only way to determine the best hearing aid for your needs, Now Hear This® is pleased to help patients make smart decisions about their hearing health care provider.
Miracle-Ear® Hearing Aids for Raleigh, NC Patients
While Miracle-Ear® doesn’t offer a wider range of hearing aids than most other providers, it does come with a full range of options from behind the ear styles to virtually invisible aids. It’s also easy to find a Miracle-Ear® office, as they are nationwide. However, always remember that the quality of care is more important than the aids themselves. Here are five questions to ask before deciding on your hearing health care provider, so you can be sure the hearing aids work for you.
- “Locked” hearing aids? North Carolina Miracle-Ear® dealers typically lock their devices so adjustments can only be performed at their locations. A patient who buys a locked hearing aid will have no choice but to go back to their stores, even if they move to a city where there are no locations or they are unhappy with the service.
- Hearing aid dealer or licensed audiologist? Customers of Miracle-Ear® offices are most often served by hearing aid dealers, not licensed doctors of audiology. While they are probably very nice people, these kinds of hearing aid dealers typically only need a high school education and a state license, whereas audiologists have close to a decade of university training in all aspects of hearing health diagnostics and treatment. Aside from physicians, audiologists are the only professionals licensed to diagnose both the type and extent of hearing loss while addressing other hearing health concerns.
- “Real ear measurement” devices? Many people say that Miracle-Ear® hearing aid stores in the NC Triangle typically do not use this critically important measurement device. This device utilizes a tiny microphone to ensure that the output of a hearing aid is accurately tuned to match the exact acoustics of the patient’s ear canals. It is recognized by all of the nation’s leading audiology doctorate programs as being the ONLY way to validate that a hearing aid is meeting each patient’s exact hearing needs. At Now Hear This®, our audiologists use this device each and every time to fine-tune your hearing aid, making a world of difference in your hearing and satisfaction with hearing aids.
- Hearing aid evaluations or hearing tests? Miracle-Ear® hearing tests in Cary, Garner and Wake Forest, NC are performed by dealers, not doctors. This means that they do not conduct the kinds of advanced hearing evaluations needed to properly identify hearing loss that is treatable with hearing aids vs. more severe medical conditions. Hearing “tests” are also not eligible for insurance reimbursement, while insurance does cover hearing evaluations that are conducted by licensed Raleigh audiologists.
- Pricing and customer service? National hearing aid chains, such as Miracle-Ear®, simply are not set up to provide the personal care and attention that you’ll receive from a Now Hear This® audiologist in Raleigh and Cary. While we can appreciate business models that produce very high profits, the fact is that most people want their health care providers to put their needs ahead of the need to make a high profit. Now Hear This® doesn’t advertise pricing based on a discount from the “manufacturer’s suggested retail price” because it knows many advertisers use this as a gimmick. Now Hear This® is set up so that you can get appointments that meet your needs, so that you will never feel rushed. You will be given fair pricing that is often less than the national chains. Most importantly, because of the “customer-first” mentality at Now Hear This®, you should not have to go back multiple times for your aids to be working their best.
Find the Right Hearing Aid with Help from Now Hear This®
Wondering if a Miracle-Ear® hearing aid may be right for you? For honest advice, comprehensive hearing evaluations and a range of hearing solutions, turn to the certified and licensed Raleigh audiologists at Now Hear This®. Our hearing clinic is committed to helping patients find the perfect solution for their lifestyle, budget and unique hearing needs. To discuss your options, schedule an appointment online or call us at (919) 256-2898.