I have looked up the Oticon Acto, which is 3rd in the lineup of
Oticon Aids and has facilities which I fear many NHS users do
not have access to.
Directional -Yes
User programs - 1-4
FM compatible - Yes
Telecoil - Yes
AutoPhone - Yes
Volume control - Yes
ConnectLine compatible - Yes
Cordless fitting - Yes
The church I attend has an excellent loop system. I find with
my privately purchased aids that I obtain superb speech clarity;
my friend who has Oticon Spirit Zest BTE from the NHS has
no volume control, no telecoil, one user program. The
push-button which could be used for adjusting volume up or
down, or when pressed for 2 seconds to toggle between 4
programs is not activated. The speech clarity he gets is vastly
inferior. I understand that the main differences between the
Acto and Acto Pro are the inferior noise reduction and
directionality.
The obvious thing to do is to go back to the NHS and to ask
whether his aid can be re-programmed. If my friend does this
will he get satisfaction, or bitter disappointment?
Incidentally, I am told that the NHS pays £55.52 for each of
these aids. They retail to private patients (from private
audiologists, with service) at £900+.
Problemsolver1
250 500 1000 1500 2000 3000 4000 6000 8000
L 30 20 30 50 65 65 70 90 ∆
R 25 25 35 50 50 50 100 100 ∆
Starkey X Series 70