02/28/2010

I would like to take a moment and thank all the wonderful people at HearFlorida for their outstanding service. This is clearly a company dedicated to excellence in patient care.  I unfortunately have had a hearing loss for many years and decided to live with it due to bad experiences with several hearing aid companies and my own personal stubbornness of wearing a hearing aid at the age of 40.

After reading about the new Lyric hearing aid being nominated as a top 10 new medical device for 2009 (http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/12/14/top.health.innovations.2009/index.html ), I decided to once again enter the audiologist office to give this device a chance. Thankfully, I chose Audiology Consultants of Boynton Beach.

Dr. Brandy Pouliot was absolutely the best caring professional I have met.  She took the time to listen to my needs and explain the advantages and disadvantages of  the many hearing aids they offer.   The Lyric device has worked very well for my busy lifestyle.  However, like any new hearing aid, I did develop some issues, what sets your company apart from the others is how your staff handles these issues. While travelling to New Jersey for a long weekend I began to have problems with my right ear Lyric device. I sent Dr. Pouliot an email at 7pm on a Thursday evening describing my current issue and expecting a response back the next business day, to my surprise I had a return email within 5 minutes and she did not stop until the issue was resolved.  The next morning she called a local New Jersey Lyric audiology office to discuss my problem and inquire about a possible appointment for me that day.  Dr. Pouliot then personally called my cell phone before 9:00am to discuss all my possible options (thankfully the issue was resolved and no further assistance was necessary) ….. Dr. Pouliot’s actions clearly went above and beyond the normal standards for any audiology office!

The entire HearFlorida team has shown a commitment to extremely professional care with superior customer service and 100% dedication to helping me improve my hearing.  I am clearly amazed at the increased quality of life I have experienced and am pleased to whole heartily recommend HearFlorida to all that would like to experience the same.

With Very Best Regards,

Greg

9/03/2009

Wow is all I can say!!  I can hear!
I have worn digital hearing aids for over 8 years and I thought my hearing was good with those devices. I did notice that I still had to ask people to repeat what they had said a little louder.  Sometimes more than once.  After awhile I would give up asking them to repeat.  I sure did miss a lot of conversational nuances.  The sound on the television had to be raised, even with my stat of the art hearing devices, much louder than was sometimes comfortable for people with no hearing loss.  I still missed much of the active conversations in those programs.

I decided to try the Lyric hearing aids after reading about them in the newspaper.  What a marked difference from my digital ones.  The television in now turned down to a normal level and I can hear the conversations in programs with great clarity.  Other sounds are crisp and clear and I now rarely ask people to repeat what they have said.  Hearing friends in a noisy environment is not an issue any longer and I like the idea that I can control the volume if needed.

Dr. Brandy Pouliot, my new audiologist, is knowledgeable and patient explaining the Lyric’s pro and cons.  She has taken the time to explain to my husband and me my type of hearing loss more fully.  Dr.  Pouliot has been available, frank and honest in answering questions or servicing any problems I have had concerning the fit, comfort and working of the Lyric hearing aids.

- Beatrice J.

8/30/2009

My experience with the Lyric hearing aid has been excellent so far. In the long run, the instrument is extremely comfortable once I got past the break-in period. During the first week when the device was initially fitted, there was some discomfort, especially at night. I took a few ibuprofen tablets at night during the first week and overall, getting used to the instrument was relatively painless. The amazing part is that after about 7-10 days, the Lyrics simply became part of me. There is almost no sense of the devices even being there (aside from the improvement in hearing that they provide). I would say that the Lyrics are more comfortable than even glasses or a wristwatch!
Perhaps wearing comfort is to be expected or even essential for a device that is with you on a 24/7 basis. For me, the real motivation for using the Lyric is the fact that it’s absolutely invisible to anyone else. I don’t have to reveal that I wear hearing aids unless I want to. There is simply no other device on the market that provides the stealth experience of Lyric. And because Lyric is fit in the ear canal, it let’s me have an active life style such as biking and playing ice hockey without the device getting in the way. There are some notable limitations such as swimming and I look forward to the day when a waterproof lyric becomes available.

Of course, the purpose of wearing a hearing aid is to improve hearing.  I’ve only had experience with one device before the Lyric, so I can’t compare the performance of this instrument to the many other devices that are available. While no hearing aid is perfect, the Lyric performs at least as well as my previous device. I have loss in the mid-range frequencies rather than high frequencies and the Lyric tends to boost the highs more than I would like (perhaps they will add more EQ ‘tweaks’ to future versions). Also, noisy environments were difficult before and they remain so with the Lyric. Directionality is good perhaps because the Lyric takes advantage of the ears shape and acoustical properties. Also, with 5 gain steps, I am always able to adjust the device to unique situations like noisy and quite environments. I also find the sleep mode is really useful and I almost always use it at night. You mentioned to me that some patients complain about the background electronic noise that the devices produce, but I find this self-generated noise to be negligible and not a significant drawback.

The magnet-based control is easy to use and fairly intuitive. I had to remove the devices once myself when the batteries failed and it wasn’t too difficult using the included tool.

Minor limitations aside, the Lyric is a revolutionary device that brings me closer to a natural hearing experience than anything else available. I enthusiastically endorse the product and absolutely plan to continue my subscription.

Regards,

Stuart K.

6-05-2009

I have struggled with hearing loss for many years, and bought hearing aids elsewhere before I went to Audiology Consultants. I instantly felt comfortable with the staff and audiologist, received more thorough testing than I ever had, am hearing better than I have in years and therefore participating in activities and conversations more. I am so impressed by the knowledge, care, and willingness to help, and cannot be more thankful for this improvement in my life.

Harvey R.

4-15-09

I don’t even know where to begin.  My life has changed for the better… what I remember normal hearing used to be.  I have been reluctant for years to purchase the dreaded hearing aid.  It was not the experience that I expected.  I was fit with the NEW Lyric hearing aids and I can’t thank you enough.  The feeling of waking up the first morning and I just heard.  It was like you performed a miracle and I am forever grateful.

Thank you!

Esther K.

5/12/2008

This is the kind of letter I am happy to write.  For the past ten years I have had the unfortunate experience of three different hearing aid dispensers.  I have finally found a hearing aid provider that has fitted me with a pair of hearing aids that really work.  Attending family functions, business meetings, eating dinner out and just everyday conversations used to be a handicap for me because I could not understand any of the conversations or they were too loud so I ended up turning the hearing aids off.  Dr. Locker and his staff at Audiology Consultants of Boynton Beach have fitted me with a pair of hearing aids that have made the above mentioned negative functions, pleasurable experiences once again.  I can now participate in conversations and enjoy my evenings out with family and friends.  They went the extra mile to try and fit me with hearing aids that do a great job instead of just something to get by with.  Again, I wish to thank them for making my life a lot more enjoyable.

Yours in appreciation,

Ray O.

3/17/2008

For at least 35 years I had noticed a decrease loss in my hearing and would have periodic hearing examinations in an effort to find a solution to my problem using only Ear, Nose and Throat specialist and the same routine answer always was given after they exhausting  all the tests and processing  them through my insurance…….there was nothing they could do.  When I came to your audiologist group I was treated with an attitude that a solution to my hearing decrease was possible with recent break through in hearing aids.  After taking the test I was given the best news I could ever asked for; hope for better hearing!  The entire process took about two months until I was perfectly comfortable, and it was more than I could have expected.  Now I can hear sounds that I could not hear before and even better it has lessened the tension between me and my spouse when discussing any subject by not having to repeat herself constantly.  The gift of hearing again………….you just can’t put a price tag on it.

H. Ramadan