Looks like we’re close to each other. Born and bred in Pontypridd (but lived in newport for last 20 years).
Wheres you’re shop then?
Carmarthen and Swansea. (Originally Bedwas) If you’re after a RIC for that money, we’re doing Bernafon Viron 5, which imho is a slightly better from a robustness/reliability point of view.
The Rechargeable is also quite good value, as it features a replaceable rechargeable cell, should you run into problems down the line. That removes a bit of the warranty headache.
In my experience, public healthcare has nothing to do with wait times for audiology services in Canada. We mostly have to pay out-of-pocket for hearing aids here in Canada (in Ontario, the government will kick in $500 per ear, which of course is nowhere near enough). I have two different insurance plans through my workplace and my wife’s, but I’ll still be paying thousands out-of-pocket. This is one of the areas where our medical services are quasi-American (like dental care), and it’s awful. You know not of what you speak.
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Bumping this old thread to see if anyone knows about the current waiting times in England? I know I have had hearing loss since I was 20 but could never afford hearing aids and I still don’t know if they are an option for me.
I was just referred to the local Hospital’s ENT and my GP told me that due to the current situation I should expect the waiting times to be quite long and that they would contact me when they have an exact date but they weren’t able to tell me an approximate timeframe.
I’m curious if anyone has gotten hearing aids during the pandemic through the NHS and how long did they have to wait both for the referral appointment and for the hearing aid fitting? I certainly hope it’s not 30 months but to be honest I would completely understand if it were so.
I waited 5 weeks for my appointment and got fitted on the same day as my audiogram was done. This was about 2 months ago.
Wow that’s fast! Do you think yours is a special case or does your audiologist seem to do it all at once as common practice? I’ve never heard of anyone who got their hearing aids the same day they had their audiograms done.
Well I just got the letter for my appointment with the audiologist and it seems like the wait is going to be four months for me. If hearing aids are the best option for me I think I can expect to get them before the end of the year… not too bad!
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Welp, just an update on this just in case someone from the UK is still interested in this. I just had my first appointment with the audiologist today because the appointment kept on getting cancelled and rescheduled. So, so far it’s been 6 months since my GP referred me.
I was offered hearing aids (Danalogic Ambio I think) but I still need some further exams done before I can get them fitted.
So maybe the wait right now from the moment you see your GP to the moment you get HA fitted could be around the 6-8 month mark (this is in England).
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Here’s a website to look up what the Aids can do.
They work with an App but won’t stream music or calls unless you use a device, ie Phone Clip.
Oh, thank you for the link! Yes, my audiologist explained that they work with an app but can’t use bluetooth or connect to other devices and I’d need an extra device for that.
I don’t know if I’ll get one though, I think I’ll see how I manage with the aids first. It seems I’ll have to wait around 4 more weeks to get them fitted, I’m kind of excited to try them on 
I think this aids seem to be exclusive for the NHS? do you know if they have a commercial equivalent?
I’m not very experienced with Resound. I wouldn’t know what they are equal too in the private market.
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It’ll be a very slightly de-featured Quattro/3D.
I’m not sure if the NHS is pulling in the rechargeable version or full RIC yet with the charging case.
that makes sense, It seems like they are not as popular as the phonak aids
In the link Zebras shared it seems like they have a rechargeable and RIC options but I don’t know if they are being offered to patients yet
I lost an NHS aid (Phonak Nathos S+) and the ear mould. I’ve just had 9 weeks turnaround time from ordering by phone to delivery via post (I’m in the NHS Lothians area). I got a Nathos Auto in return.
These are my backups for the KS10s I bought during that 9 weeks wait. I’m now looking to restart lip reading and maybe learning to sign. I can’t imagine what it’s like needing HAs and waiting several months. I know the NHS is besieged - even without this terrible pandemic - and something has to give, but HAs are not an area to let slide…
I had impression done for moulds and had to wait 15 months before i was able to pick them up but got them in June and am now very happy to have got them
Holy schmeck LRav, that’s appalling 
I’d guess your ears have grown in that 15 month wait time as well 
Hello to all, this is my first post.
A long term user of NHS hearing aids, over thirty years, coming up to my sixth set. Due to extensive ear surgery, bilateral mastoidectomies, tympanoplasties and ossiculoplasties.
Just last week got prescribed my next pair, which will be Phonak Nathos Nova. To replace my last set, Siemens Octiv M+
Borderline between needing a high power aid on one side, but hopefully the medium power version will do, maxed out.
These are the NHS version of the Phonak Marvel series, at about level 7 out of 9 on their tech. scale.
Looking forward to exploring the bluetoothery stuff, which I expect to be transfomative.
From GP referral to consultation at hospital took 3 weeks. The metric here (SE England) is 6 weeks max. otherwise the service gets a black mark.
I would have walked out with new aids that day, except that I require custom moulds, so that puts, currently a 6-8 week delay on that. The new ones will be posted to me, then about 4 weeks later I will receive a remote consultation via. the MyPhonak app.
If we can’t make the necessary fine tweaks over the 'phone then we’ll have a face-face soon enough, and in the ear measurements etc. But as they know my history I expect they will get it close, rather than just press the autofit button…
I am an experienced hearing aid user, and have been well served by the NHS, for about 30 years.
My condition is slightly complex, certainly not the usual age related decline, although I expect that has been going on as well, but mostly conductive (large air gap measurements) together with a severe drop-off at higher frequencies, also evident on the bone conduction tests.
My surgeons did warn me about that, basically the noise from drilling out a large amount of mastoid bone, with something like a dentist’s drill, was going to deafen me significantly whatever the end result. But both ops. ten years apart, went as well as could be optimistically expected. On the later one I had to consent, in detail, to, basically, no promise of any hearing left at all. As well as various other scary possibilities, some of which did happen. This was not exactly an elective procedure, rather an emergency. Which was correct, it took five further operations to get some hearing back. God bless the NHS.
My NHS audiologists seem to have found it rather interesting, and gone the extra mile to do their best, with whatever tech. they have available at the time.
The Nathos Nova is only available in M power that is disposables or P power that is rechargeable’s.
Which ones do you have? I’ll be interested in your reviews about the P power, like do you get all the accessories to cater for them eg charger etc?
The NHS were very reluctant to provide any accessories but I guess times are changing.
They will be M power, disposable cells, with T-coils. On the edge of needing P power, but only in one ear. I think that M power will be fine, as does my audiologist. No accessories asked for by me.
Of course the P powers do come standard as rechargeable. Supplied with a charger. Looked at them too, but no T-coil, bigger and so far we think not necessary yet.
Quite happy to stick with disposable cells, size 13. They suit my lifestyle well, and of course, I get them supplied for free.
Hopefully I’ll have them before Christmas, I got to choose the colour too (silver grey). They have them ready, just waiting on the earmoulds to be made. Previous set have a dome on one side, and a mould on the other. New audiologist strongly suggested that I might now do better with moulds both sides, I agreed.
Watch this space …