“I want to be able to hear again.”

It’s the reason millions of Americans visit hearing care practices every year. Yet, sadly, most are disappointed with how things turn out. The hearing aids they purchased with their hard-earned money either flat-out don’t work, or the benefit they receive doesn’t live up to their expectations … or the promises of the dispenser’s glitzy advertisements and mailers.

How can this be, when a decade and a half into the 21st Century, four and a half decades after we landed on the moon, and over a 100 years since the Wright brothers first defied Earth’s gravity, we should have the technology to fix hearing difficulties, right?

You might expect the word “Wrong” here, but you’d be, er, wrong.

We DO have the technology to correct almost all hearing difficulties, both in the diagnostics (the “testing”), and in treatment (hearing aid technology).

The problem lies with the people who are doing the testing, the dispensing, and the servicing of the hearing aids and the patients. That is because much of the hearing care industry has devolved into a transactional process, rather than on putting the needs of the patients first and foremost.

Notice that I did not say “all” of the industry. There are some bright spots. And one of those is AudigyGroup, its AudigyCertification™ of member practices, and its Patients For Life™ ongoing staff training.

The brainchild of founder Brandon Dawson , Patients for Life (PFL) training provides all staff members of AudigyCertified practices with the most phenomenal training in patient care and service available in the United States.

In fact, my entire Team and I have just returned from two full days of PFL training at AudigyGroup headquarters in Vancouver, WA. While Aubrey Lee and Debbie Martin have each been to several of these trainings, and I have lost count of how many I have attended, it never ceases to amaze us how there is always something new to learn!

But no matter how good the training, it would be useless without the right people.
People who really care, who want to come to work everyday with the goal of changing their patient’s lives for the better. I – and our patients – are blessed to have some of the most caring, dedicated, passionate, hard-working hearing care professionals I have known in over 30 years in this profession.

Here, in their own words, is WHY they so enjoy doing what they do:

Aubrey Lee, Audiology Aide and Patient Care Liaison: “The best part of my job is when a patient leaves our office so relieved and happy that they can now hear better, and their lives – and the lives of their loved ones and friends – will be better, too. That is a wonderful and gratifying experience.”

Debbie Martin, Audiology Aide and Patient Care Liaison: “My favorite part about what we do here is seeing the look on a patient’s face when we go through the process of helping them hear better. Being able to effect someone’s life in such a dramatic way – and sharing that experience with my fabulous teammates and Dr. Chalmers – is something that is just amazing to participate in.”

The reality of being able to hear again doesn’t start with a product or a sale or a discount. It starts with someone who really cares … because hearing is a wonderful gift!

About the writer: Crystal Chalmers, Au.D., is an AudigyCertified™ Doctor of Audiology, the owner of North State Audiological Services in Chico, and a member of AudigyGroup, the nation’s largest member-owned association of independent hearing care professionals.

Since 2006, AudigyGroup has interviewed over 5,000 of the 18,000 audiologists in the United States, yet has selected only 250 to be members in this elite association. Dr. Chalmers is the only AudigyGroup professional in the entire northeastern part of California. AudigyCertified™ is a trade-mark of AudigyGroup, LLC.

To learn more about Dr. Chalmers, her practice, and AudigyGroup visit online at www.nsaudiology.com or call toll free at 1 (888) 844-7024